Surprise Yourself
by moviegeek03
Summary: America is supposed to be the answer to his problems, the medical care he desperately needs, the educational opportunities he desperately wishes for, and the life he deserves. But since arriving 4 months ago, all Alexander has received is more trouble. Now, he's being shipped off to a new foster family hundreds of miles away. Will the Washington's finally be the ones to help?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I recently read "Rise Up" by ohNooOOOOoo and became intrigued by the idea of a modern day Alexander coming to the United States and being thrust into the foster system. In doing so, this came about. I do not have a medical degree, so I apologize for any medical inaccuracies that may come about during this. Furthermore, I have never visited the Caribbean. Yes, I am aware that Hamilton himself was born on Nevis, not Puerto Rico, but for the sake of the plot, I altered it slightly.

* * *

"You'll be back! Time will tell."

Alex shrunk against the side of the car, shivering at the harsh words echoing from the doorway. His foster father, well his former foster father, George, leaned against the doorframe, the bruise a stark contrast against his otherwise pale face. Alex's sides and face ached with their own bruises. This time had gone too far. It was just too much. Everything had been too much. His whole damn life…

"Mr. King?" Alex's caseworker, Mr. Seabury, greeted as he finally stepped out of the car. Alex bit his lip, drawing blood from the small cuts that littered the flesh there. The man never took up for him; never noticed how his recent fosters treated him. No one ever did. Not back at home after his cousin's death, and not here in the states.

"Samuel," George returned.

Samuel walked around the car and placed a hand firmly on Alex's thin shoulder, causing the boy to flinch at the touch. Samuel either ignored him or didn't notice. Alex could never tell with the man. Regardless, he knew Seabury saw him as a huge inconvenience. That's all he'd been since the Red Cross workers pushed to bring him to Florida after the hurricane. No one truly cared.

"I'm sorry to see each other under such circumstances," Samuel stated.

"Well, I knew the risks when I took him in," George sighed. "Given his upbringing." Alex bit into his lip harder; fighting would get him nowhere right now. "Anyway, what comes next?"

"Special placement." Seabury pushed his glasses up on his face. Alex bristled at the words. "Given his recent difficulties and extensive health problems, we've been granted permission to break the rules and allow him to leave the state. A couple in Virginia –some politician and his wife –agreed to take him in."

"Virginia politicians?" George rubbed his chin as if he was actually thinking. Alex knew he wasn't. He could tell by the fake smile on his face. "Oh you must mean the Washington's! Old friends of my father's, you know! Heard they were turning into a little home for wayward wards." He smiled down at Alex for a moment, sending another shiver down the teen's spine. "Well, awesome, wow! Aren't you lucky! They'll straighten you out for sure." He ruffled Alex's hair, leaning in close to the boy's ear. "When they say they hate you, don't come crawling back to me."

Alex pushed himself away, slamming his back into the car. He struggled to breath for a moment, nothing new but frustrating all the same. He wanted away, but knew he couldn't make it far. He chest already felt tight and sore, just as it had for the past few weeks. He wouldn't make it past the end of the block.

"Well, we best be off, Alexander," Seabury finally ordered. "We have a train to catch."

Alex glanced at Mr. King one last time before climbing into the passenger's seat. He clutched his worn messenger bag tightly to his aching chest. There wasn't much in it. A few books and journals sandwiched between a few days' worth of clothing. Nothing much. Definitely not enough for Virginia's weather this time of year.

"Alex, I'm taking you to the train station and handing you over to the staff. They will take over your care at that time, and you and I will no longer be associated, understood?"

"Yes," Alex mumbled, relieved to be rid of the useless man beside him. Since first meeting the man in the hospital four months ago, Alex knew Seabury wanted rid of him. His case was complicated, he would never doubt that. A bastard immigrant from the Caribbean with a heart condition brought to the US for aid by Red Cross workers following a Hurricane? Yeah, he knew that was bound to draw media attention if things went to shit. It was the makings of one of those damn lifetime movies Mrs. King watched all day in her room over while George reigned over the rest of the house with his iron fist.

Seabury may not have been the smartest of men, but he knew that Alex would draw attention if he weren't careful. It could be a mess. Hell, it should be a mess now with everything the Kings had put him through. Alex had no doubt that that was exactly why the state had agreed to ship him off without much fuss. No one wanted a powder keg on his or her hands.

"Alex?" Seabury huffed. "Are you listening to me?"

"Of course, sir," Alex lied, leaning back in the car seat. He settled in for what he assumed would be a fairly hellish journey. He could only hope that the end result would prove less damning.

xxxxxxxx

They could no longer see their coffee table for all the papers and pictures covering it. Seabury's office in Florida had emailed everything that had on one Alexander Hamilton, age 15. Every traumatic detail of the boy's life lay out before them.

"George," Martha gasped as she picked up the most recent photo of Alex. It showed a thin, sickly child in a hospital bed. He managed to muster up a sad smile for the camera, but it was obvious that it was forced. His face was pale and drawn, his body gaunt.

"I know, sweetheart," George replied, squeezing her hand. He picked up some papers with the other and began to read softly. "Alexander Hamilton, born in Puerto Rico to Rachel Fawcett, deceased, and James Hamilton, location unknown. Currently, age 15, weighing in at 105 pounds and height of five foot three."

"He's so small," Martha added.

"Not surprising." George laid the papers back onto the table and massaged his scalp. "From what I can gather, the boy's father left shortly after his birth. He was never married to Alex's mother. Rachel worked as a housekeeper for various businessmen on the island, meeting James at one such job. She continued to work, hiding her pregnancy as much as possible and receiving little by way of medical care. From the meager medical records of his childhood, it doesn't appear as if she was able to afford healthcare after he was born either."

"But you said he had a heart defect, correct?" Martha removed her hand from her husband's and began to rub his back as he summarized Alex's history for her.

"Atrial septal defect…that was likely present at birth. Remained undetected until the boy was twelve and contracted a rather severe case of pneumonia alongside his mother. According to what Alex has told social services, his mother forwent treatment for herself in order to try to provide for Alex. Despite this, she was unable to afford surgeries to repair the hole in the heart and instead could only obtain medications to treat symptoms and the pneumonia. She herself continued to worsen and died from complications soon after."

"God," Martha gasped.

"Alex moved to his cousin's small house for a few months where his health continued to decline and medications became more scarce. Everything culminated in the cousin committing suicide a few months after Alex moved in. Social services on the island stepped in at that point and he became their ward. Looks like he was placed in an emergency foster home."

"Why do I have a feeling that things continued to worsen?"

George sighed deeply, massaging his forehead as a headache began to form. "Because it did. A hurricane hit the island a few months later. Alex's foster siblings and father perished in the flooding, but Alex survived. Solely because his foster parents locked him in the attic space that the mother tried to claim was his bedroom after the fact. Emergency services and Red Cross workers found him barely alive in the small space. Doctors checked him over and found the heart condition….they heard the heart murmur that accompanies it. Alex was given medical attention and apparently regained consciousness after a day in the emergency center. The workers became quite taken with him and his story, so much so that the director convinced the Florida government to allow Alex entrance into the states for treatment and assistance. He was provided the surgeries and treatments he required a few weeks after his arrival. He spent time in a Miami hospital before being placed in a small group home and then ultimately the Kings' foster home."

"The Kings? Any relation to that wretched man you used to work under when you first joined the military?"

"His youngest son I'm afraid. Appears to take after his father in terms of personality." George handed Martha another photo where Alex sported a set of bruises along his jaw and a split lip.

"This poor child."

"Seabury does not believe that King was abusing Alex."

"But—"

"I know, sweetheart," George continued. "I didn't say I am agreeing with the findings. Seabury stated that King told social services that Alex became violent towards himself and his wife. That the bruises and cuts were purely self defense and Alex fighting him back."

Martha stood and began to pace. "This boy…"

George stood and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. "We'll help him. We'll make sure he is healthy and safe."

"I know." Martha pulled away. "I'm just glad that the idiot Seabury thought to call in favors with people who know us."

"Mmm," Martha agreed. "Good things happen when your former acquaintances call in favors regarding supposedly troubled boys."

George laughed. "Very true. Now to inform our boy of his new housemate."

No sooner had George spoken, the front door clicked open. A blur of curls rushed past the Washingtons, headed towards the stairs with a quick greeting thrown out along the way. George half laughed, half sighed at his young ward's antics as he jumped up to stop the boy.

"Lafayette," George called, "can you spare a moment? We need to talk to you before you go upstairs, please."

"Oui?"

George wrapped an arm around the taller boy's shoulders. "How was the movie? Did both Herc and John get to go?"

"It was good. Plenty of explosions to appease Herc and just enough plot for John and I," he replied as George steered him towards the den. Lafayette's eyes appeared to fall on the mess of files across the table. "What is going on?"

"Hello, baby," Martha greeted. She placed the pictures she had been holding back into the file folders, here eyes misty with unshed tears.

"Guys, you are scaring me. What's wrong?"

"Laf, please sit down," George gently ordered.

"Yeah, sure." Lafaette followed orders, sitting on the arm of the couch. "Now will you tell me what is wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, son," George stated.

"But we need to talk to you about a change that is going to occur," Martha added.

"Yes," George continued. "An old acquaintance of mine from Florida called in a favor this morning. He has a boy, about your age, in need of emergency housing."

Lafayette's brow furrowed. "You mean like me?"

"Not quite, sweetheart," Martha replied. "You see, this boy doesn't have a family."

"An orphan?" Lafayette asked.

"Yes," George answered. "He's from Puerto Rico and hasn't been in the states for long. But he's not had an easy go of things. He has some health problems and not been placed in the best of situations since arriving."

Lafayette noticed the pictures on the table. "Merde," he cursed, fingering the edges of the images, eyes trained on the bruised face staring up at him.

"Laf? Son?"

"Huh? Oh…sorry, George."

George squeezed his shoulder. "No need for apologies. I simply asked if you were okay with this new arrangement? Alex, the boy we are talking about, will be our foster son for the foreseeable future. He needs a safe place and help. This is his shot at that. Are you okay with this?"

Lafayette looked back at the photos and nodded his head. "Oui. Of course."

George sighed in relief, clapping the boy on the back. "Good man."

Martha pulled Lafayette away, the two talking a hundred miles a minute about everything they needed to do to prepare for Alex's arrival. George could hear them discussing clothes and shopping and decorating of rooms—George couldn't help but smile. But as soon as his eyes caught a glimpse of the photos again, he knew it wouldn't be that simple. They had a long road ahead of them.

xxxxxxx

Alex woke with a pounding headache as the train came to a halt. He was getting used to the pain. Between his head and sore muscles, he was getting used to it. He blinked around at his surroundings, trying to gain focus.

"Sweetheart?"

Alex startled at the voice despite its soft tone. "I'm sorry," he quickly apologized.

She smiled at him. "We have reached your destination, sweetheart." Alex sat up straighter and peered out the window, noticing the station and the people running around the pavement by the tracks. "I have been asked to make sure you make it to your family. Can you follow me?"

Alex bit his lip at the word family, but nodded nonetheless. He didn't have a family. That word hadn't applied to him in a long time. She didn't need to know that though. Knowing that, brought pity. He didn't want pity. So he followed. He kept his mouth shut. Kept quiet, suppressing the slight groans of pain that threatened to escape as his sore body was forced to move.

"Watch your step, dear," the lady cautioned as they stepped off the train and onto the platform. "Right this way now. Your family should be over this way somewhere. If you see them, just let me know."

Alex nodded again. He had no idea what these new people, the Washington's he reminded himself, actually looked like. He scanned the crowd nonetheless. He figured it would be hopeless, yet his eyes soon landed on a brightly colored sign baring his name. He allowed his gaze to follow up towards the person holding the sign. He took in the sight of a boy around his age. He had what looked like a mess of curly hair pulled back into a bun. He wore patterned black and white pants with a brightly colored band t-shirt and purple jacket. Alexander had not been expected this.

"Um, I think I see them," he stuttered and pointed towards the other boy.

The lady laughed. "It looks that way. I—"

"Thank you for the help," he interrupted. "But I think I can manage from here, ma'am." He smiled politely, hoping she would take her leave.

She looked between Alex and the boy, her brows knit, before finally nodding for him to walk over. Alex could feel her eyes on him as he turned away from her. There was no chance of running. Hell, even if he wanted to, he couldn't. His chest ached, reminding him he wouldn't make it far. He inwardly cursed his body, the same body that was supposed to be fine by now. Granted, nothing ever seemed to go the way they were supposed to for Alex.

He sighed and walked towards the boy with the sign. He shoulders slumped with each step. He couldn't muster the energy to appear stoic. Not after spending the last two days on a damn train. His feet shuffled forward, the exhaustion weighing him down.

"Alexander?" the boy greeted once he noticed Alex walking closer. His voice was thick with a French accent, something Alex had not expected either. He nodded in response, finally standing next to the boy. "Fantastique! I am Lafayette. George and Martha wanted to be here to greet you, but were unable to get away from work on such short notice."

"Ok," Alex stated, unsure what to make of the boy in front of him.

"Not that I mind," Lafayette continued. "It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance and be at your service!" He bowed to Alex. "Do you need to get any bags or anything?"

Alex blushed. "I only have my backpack."

"Here," Lafayette reached over and removed it from Alex's hands. "Let me." Alex wanted to protest, but refrained for the moment. "My car is just outside. Martha, she requested that I stop by the store and have you pick up a few necessities on the way home. If you feel up to it."

Alex nodded, despite the growing exhaustion sweeping over him. He started to follow Lafayette to the car. He remained quiet for the majority of the walk, but curiosity soon won out. "Are you the Washington's…"

"Ward…basically," Lafayette supplied. "My parents, well my papa mainly, are old friends of George's. Papa works for the American Embassy in France. They met during some political event of some form or another. They travel a lot. My parents I mean. So I was in boarding school in France. It was, well, a disaster to put it simply." Lafayette laughed as he gently steered Alex towards the car. "I managed to piss off the headmaster of not one, not two, but three schools over the course of the last three years. Papa sent me here for school after that and asked the Washington's to be my legal guardians while I attend American high school." He shrugged and slid into the car. Alex followed suit.

"Oh," Alex stated, suppressing a yawn in the progress. "I'm sorry."

"No need to be, mon ami. The Washington's are wonderful. I've seen more of them in the last two years that I've lived with them than I did my parents." Lafayette started up the car and pulled out of the driveway. "Enough about me. How are you, Alex?"

"I'm fine," he lied.

Lafayette smiled and shook his head. "I feel that is less than true." He stopped at a nearby red light and looked Alex up and down, causing him to squirm under the scrutiny. "You look exhausted, mon cher."

"I'm fi—"

"Saying it twice does not make it true." Lafayette kept his voice gentle. "Look, Alex, I do not mean to pry. I know that we have just met and you have to be a tad, how you say, overwhelmed at all of this. And, given that bruise I can see around your face, I'm going to bet that there are more of those, no?"

Alex bit his lip and looked out the window.

"I'm sorry. Again, I do not mean to be harsh. That is the last thing I want to be towards you."

Alex rolled his eyes. "Would make you the first." He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth.

"I am sorry to hear that, mon ami, and promise you that I will not be the only one to care. The Washington's, they are good. They will care."

Alex didn't respond. He went back to looking out the window, silently processing what the other boy had just said.

"Alex? Can you please tell me how you really feel?"

Alex sighed, inwardly debating how to respond. Lafayette seemed genuine, but so had others in the past. He was exhausted, and honestly felt sick. "I'm tired," he relented. "I was on trains for the last two days to get here."

"Damn, that's insane. They should have given you a plane ticket. Merde. Who the hell sticks a person on a train for two days worth of traveling?"

"Fucking Seabury," Alex replied without thinking.

Lafayette snorted. "He sounds like a piece of work."

"A dog speaks more eloquently."

Lafayette laughed loudly at that, causing Alex to finally laugh a little. Unfortunately, the laughter turned into a minor coughing fit.

"Oh, that does not sound good. Alex? Are you okay?"

Alex swallowed and did his best to suppress more coughs. "Yeah." He coughed slightly again, but less violently than before. "Sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for, but I think I better get you home. I don't think shopping is in the cards for you today. We will make do! I can text Martha to stop and pick up some things for you."

"I'm sorry," Alex stated again, slumping in the car seat.

"Really, Alex, it's fine. Martha won't mind. And there is no need for you to be out in the cold with that cough. We'll get you home. I can show you around and then you can get some rest in your room. Martha changed the sheets and freshened up earlier, though I believe George forgot to remove the old law books he had been keeping on the bookcase in there. We can always change things for you later though! Oh, and we should have cough syrup in the cabinet if you would like."

Alex's head swam with the new information. He would have a room all to his own? With legal books on the shelves? And medicine? He didn't know what to think of it all. The confusion became even worse once they pulled up in front of a large estate. The house was nothing short of incredible, both inside and out. Alex didn't know where to look or what to say as Lafayette took him on an abbreviated tour of the house. However, the other boy must have taken Alex's silence as a sign of his exhaustion and illness. Before Alex knew it, Lafayette was guiding him to a bedroom and shoving cough medicine into his hands.

"Feel better, mon ami. I will come for you at dinner." With that, Lafayette took his leave.

Alex blinked at the spacious room, trying to take it all in. His head felt like it was about to explode once again and his chest twinged from the cough. His body ached to explore the new space, to see where he could hide his journals, and where he could hide himself if things took a turn for the worse. But his body ached more from the long journey. Before he could even consider his options, he found himself curling up on top of the comforter in the bedroom. He shouldn't get comfortable. Nothing good would come from it.

But for now, it looked like he had little choice. His eyes grew heavy and his body betrayed him once more, sleep pulling him under at long last.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you so much for all the support for this fic 3. Hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!

* * *

Alex woke to a pounding noise this time rather than a pounding head. His eyes were slow to open; his body still exhausted. The noise started up again. He blinked his eyes and forced himself into a sitting position.

"Alexander?"

Alex finally noticed the voice that accompanied the knocking. He swallowed thickly and slid off the bed. He opened the door slowly, cursing himself for forgetting to lock it behind himself earlier. He was greeted with a woman, Mrs. Washington he assumed, weighed down with bags on both her arms.

"Alexander? Sweetie?"

"Yes ma'am?" he replied quietly, unsure of the woman in front of him.

The woman smiled softly at him. "It's very nice to meet you. I'm Martha." She looked him up and down for a moment. His hands shook at his sides, prompting him to hide them behind his back. "How are you feeling? Laf warned that you weren't well earlier."

"I'm fine," he lied.

"Alexander—"

"Alex, please," his voice was barely above a whisper.

"Alex," Martha continued kindly, "may I come in, please?"

He bit his lip but stepped aside for her. She left the door open, which eased some of his discomfort. Not by much, but enough. She set the bags down on top of his desk, just to the side of the laptop resting on the wooden surface. She then took a seat in the desk chair and motioned for him to take a seat on his bed.

"I don't want to sound cruel, but I can tell that you don't feel fine."

He looked to the floor. "I'm sorry."

"Alex, you have nothing to be sorry for. "I only want you to tell me how you are really feeling? George and I went through your history and I just want to make sure we can help however you need."

Alex's split lip started to reopen as he anxiously gnawed on the flesh. No one truly cared about his health; they usually cared about how much they could get from the state for his health problems instead.

"Alex?"

"I'm sorry," he automatically stated, hating himself for the constant apologies.

Martha smiled at him again. She stood from the chair and sat next to him on the bed. He stiffened for a moment but forced his body to relax.

"Alex, may I feel your forehead?"

His brow knit in confusion but he nodded nonetheless after a few moments. He counted it as a small win that he didn't flinch at her touch.

"You feel a little warm." She smoothed back his messy hair with a gentle touch.

"I feel better than when I got off the train," Alex relented. "Lafayette gave me some medicine when we got here earlier. It helped."

Martha nodded. "You should be due another dose after dinner. Do you feel up to eating downstairs?"

Alex shifted uncomfortably at the question. Questions like that never ended well for him; people never really wanted him to have a choice. "If you want me to."

"I only want you to do what you feel up to doing, sweetie."

Alex didn't feel like he had other options. Families never gave him options. "I'm fine, really. I can come eat."

Martha rubbed his back and stood. "It should be ready soon. I left Lafayette in charge. I haven't heard the fire alarms go off, so I'm assuming that means he's actually following directions and not trying to get creative with the chicken."

Alex smiled at that, imaging the other boy experimenting in the kitchen. "Thank you."

"Of course." She paused in the doorway. "Oh, I nearly forgot! Those bags, they have some clothing and necessities in them. Laf guessed your size and I just picked up some basics on the way home. Jeans, tees, sweaters…that type of thing. It's not much and I know it's pretty plain, but it will do until you feel well enough to pick out things yourself."

Alex glanced at the bags, surprised to see them all overflowing with clothes. "Thank you," he repeated.

"You are most welcome." Martha sent him one last smile as she spoke. With that, Martha left Alex alone in his room. Alex marveled that she actually shut the door behind her. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. He looked horrible. His face was pale, making the bruises and cuts leftover from Mr. King stick out all the more. His hair poked out at various angles; he didn't have a chance to take it out of his bun before he passed out on his bed earlier. And his clothes…

With a sigh, he stood from the bed and stumbled to the desk. He pulled his hair out of the bun and used his fingers to comb through it. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. He put it back up as neatly as he could before tugging off his old clothes. He slipped a new pair of jeans on, momentarily marveling at the warmth they offered. He dug out a tee and hoodie from another bag.

His scar was ugly and red when he removed his shirt. His eyes darted away from his chest as quickly as possible and he slid on the new shirt. He zipped up the hoodie over top of it, and then checked his hair one last time.

"Hey," a voice called with a knock. The door opened a crack.

Alex opened the door to Lafayette's smiling face. "Hello."

"You're looking better, mon ami." Lafayette smoothed out wrinkles on the hoodie's shoulder. "Though Martha didn't pick out very unique clothing for you."

Alex laughed at Lafayette's obvious aversion towards the clothes. "They're nice, Laf. Warm."

Laf nodded, a small smile on his face. "I'd still like to take you shopping sometime. So that you can pick out your own things."

Alex stepped out of the room and into the hall with Laf. "Something tells me you would pick out things for me."

"Moi? Never!" Lafayette feigned a hurt expression. He then gently slung an arm around Alex's shoulders. "Martha has finished dinner. Do you feel up to sitting with us? If not, I can bring it up to you."

"I told Martha I would come down."

Lafayette hugged him from the side. "I heard, but she won't be mad if you've changed your mind. Neither will George."

Alex shifted under Lafayette's hold. "I don't want to upset anyone. It's fine." Alex started to walk towards the stairs.

"You will learn, mon ami," Lafayette said softly, "that you will not upset them that easily."

Alex shrugged, taking the steps slowly as the aches from earlier rekindled the more he began to move. "I don't want to be rude."

Lafayette scoffed. "I know we haven't known each other for long, but I would not use the words polite to describe myself."

"That's not—"

Lafayette reached the foyer first. "I mean it. I can be a difficult person at times, and I know I'm loud and can be a bit eccentric. But they accept me for me. They don't get angry at me for voicing my opinions or needs. They just aren't like that."

"Oh, Alex, you look nice in those clothes," Martha stated, rounding the corner before Alex could respond to Lafayette. "Laf, sweetheart, will you show Alex to the dining room? I just need to grab the rolls from the oven and I'll be right there."

"Sure," he replied. Martha kissed him on the cheek and gave Alex's shoulder a squeeze. Lafayette almost beamed at the affection, while Alex was still anxious. His anxiety skyrocketed when he finally saw George.

The man was large, though honestly not as imposing as his brain had conjured up during the train ride. Granted, that didn't matter. King hadn't been a big man either, but he had still been able to hurt Alex. This man could hurt him. It wouldn't be hard.

"Hello, you must be Alex," George greeted with a smile. He stood from his chair and extended a hand for Alex to shake. The boy returned the gesture, his hand trembling as he grasped George's. The older man's brow knit as Alex's shook in his own, causing Alex to pull it away and wrap his arms around himself. "It's nice to finally meet you, son."

His spine tingled at the words. _I'm not your son…_

"Here we are!" Martha said, walking into the room with a basket rolls in one hand and a bowl of mashed potatoes in the other. "George, honey, will you go grab the chicken for me? And the broccoli? I think we have everything else already."

"Sure. Excuse me, Alex." George slid past Alex, barely brushing against him. Alex startled; Lafayette noticed.

"You're okay," he said softly so that only Alex could hear. "You can sit here if you want. You'll be between Martha and I. Would that help for now?"

Alex nodded, casting his head down. "Thank you."

"Always," Laf replied, squeezing his shoulder. He gently guided Alex into the chair just as George returned with the rest of their food. Martha adjusted the dishes on the table and took her seat as well.

George followed a moment later, taking the seat further from Alex. "Alex," he said, "if you need anything or have questions for us, please just let us know. Otherwise, feel free to help yourself to anything on the table."

Alex nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Though, you have to try Martha's mashed potatoes," Lafayette interjected. "They are the best!"

Alex sent him a grateful smile and took the bowl of mashed potatoes from him. Lafayette continued to make comments about Martha's cooking and passed around the dishes until Alex had a little of everything on his plate. It all looked and smelled heavenly; the taste wasn't far from it either. Unfortunately, after a few bites, his split lip started to reopen and the cuts along his gums, all courtesy of his final showdown with King, began to throb. He tried to hide the pain it all caused, but he wasn't successful.

"Alex?" George called over the table. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, sir," he replied, doing his best to hide a wince as pain shot through his gums as an errant piece of broccoli brushed against the wrong place. He tried to take a bite of potatoes to cover, but he made the mistake of opening his mouth too widely. He tasted blood on his lip with the movement.

"Alex?"

Alex startled as George put his hand on his shoulder. He hadn't realized the man had gotten up and was beside him.

"It's okay, Alex. You're okay. Not in trouble. Promise." George gently rubbed his shoulder. "Let's get you back to your room."

Alex swallowed down any argument and stood, allowing George to guide him into the next room. George stopped Alex before he could reach the stairs.

"I can see that your mouth is bothering you and Lafayette told us about the coughing earlier. But is there anything else?" Alex shook his head no. "Son, I want you to be honest with me. You're not going to be in trouble. If something is hurting, we need to know. We want to help you, not hurt you."

Alex sighed heavily and closed his eyes. He carefully lifted the hem of his shirt and hoodie; just enough to show that his sides had dark bruises running up and down it. He hated it. Hated exposing himself like that. He kept his eyes shut, never seeing the sadness in George's eyes.

"Alex, go on up to your room. You should change into pajamas. I'll be there soon."

Alex nodded and did as he was told. His mind ran a hundred miles and hour as he walked up the steps, concocting up horrible images of an angry George. By the time he reached his room and changed out of his jeans into a pair of sweats, he had convinced himself George would be on his way to punish him; that the man would barrel into the room in a fit of rage.

Instead, George softly knocked before opening the door and peaking into the room. "Is it okay if I come in?"

"Yes, sir," Alex squeaked out, hating the shakiness of his voice.

George entered, his arms weighed down with various bottles, towels, and ice packs. "You can get into bed if you want, son. It might be easier."

Alex blinked at the man in confusion before complying. He pulled back the covers and sat with his back against his pillows. "Sir?"

George sat on the edge of the bed and placed all his supplies on the nightstand. "Go ahead and take these first." He put a few pills in Alex's hand as well as a small dose of cough syrup. "The pills should help with the pain and you're due another dose of cough meds by now." Alex followed orders, taking a bottle of water from George after he downed the cough syrup. George reached around him and picked up some ice packs and towels. "This should help your side. Do you mind if I check the bruises again? I want to make sure nothing's broken."

"O-okay."

George gently lifted Alex's shirts again and prodded at the flesh, causing Alex to gasp and flinch. "I'm so sorry, son." George was quick in his ministrations, thankfully. "I don't think it is broken."

"It didn't feel like it," Alex mumbled.

George gave him a sad smile. "Go ahead and lay down. We'll fix the ice packs on your side once you do."

Alex nodded and slid the rest of the way under the covers. George helped fix the towel wrapped ice packs on his side. "Now, I brought Vaseline for your lip. It won't feel comfortable, but it lets the cuts heal faster. Keeps the skin moist so it doesn't keep cracking." George untwisted the cap and let Alex dip his fingers into the bottle. "That's it. Just dab it along your lip. Good." George took the supplies back from Alex and laid them on the table again.

"Thank you."

"You are most welcome, Alex." George picked up one last thing from the table. "I also brought you this." He handed Alex a bottle with a straw poking out the top. "It's a vanilla protein shake. I know you didn't eat much at dinner, so we wanted to make sure you had a little extra. You don't have to drink all of it if you don't feel up to it, but try if you can." George rubbed the boy's back and stood from the bed. "And get some rest, Alex. We'll come check on you later."

Alex stared in awe as George exited the room. He didn't know what to make of everything that had just happened. It was all so…nice. Alex shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. With a sigh, he drank some of the shake before finally falling back to sleep.

xxxxxxxx

The next couple of days passed in a similar fashion, with Alex largely resting in his room and coming down for meals with the Washington's and Lafayette. Lafayette occasionally kept him company in his room when he was not at school, but Alex rarely ventured to the other rooms of the house, still anxious about wandering into a place he shouldn't be. Instead, he preferred to stay in his room. He spent the time writing in his old journals, becoming acquainted with the laptop Martha assured him was his to use, and devouring the legal textbooks George had left on the shelves. He wasn't supposed to start school for a few more days and the books kept his mind busy. He liked to keep his mind at work.

So that was how George found him one Sunday afternoon, reading legal books on his bed with a radio playing softly in the background. George pushed the cracked door open the rest of the way and entered.

"Hey, Alex."

Alex jumped and quickly shut the books. "George, sir, I—"

"I see you have found those old books of mine." George sat on the edge of the bed and picked up the book.

"I'm so sorry sir."

George smiled at him. "No need to be. I haven't touched them in ages and books are meant to be read. I should apologize for not having better books in here for you to read though."

"I like them," Alex muttered. "They're interesting."

George chucked at the boy. "Well, would you mind taking a break from them and helping me? You see, the weather is calling for a big storm to hit later this evening. Martha has to run to work to sort out a few things before it gets worse out there. And Lafayette has already made plans with some friends of his. Would you feel up to going with me to pick up some things from town? Nothing major. We just need some basics, and I would like to pick up a warmer jacket for you, just in case. What do you say? I could use a right hand man?"

Alex looked at George, unsure of what to say. On one hand, he was still anxious about being alone with the man, but on the other, he didn't want to inconvenience anyone. "Okay," he reluctantly agreed.

"Good man," George replied. "We'll head out once you have changed. Make sure to wear something warn."

Alex did as he was told and met George downstairs. The two headed towards the local shops George said he preferred to frequent. They stopped at a small clothing store first.

"The weather will be very cold over the next few weeks," George warned. "By my guess, colder than you've ever experienced in Puerto Rico and Florida. Try to find some sweaters, hoodies, jackets…whatever you like, Alex."

"I'm fine, sir; Martha bought some earlier," he tried to reason, but George was already steering him towards a table with sweaters and sweatshirts.

"I know you're fine, but you'll be cold. I know she just picked up a few things. Go ahead, please."

Alex resigned himself to picking out a few items. Though, George nearly doubled it on Alex by the time they reached the cash register. George insisted that Alex exchange his lightweight coat for the new thicker one before they left. Once Alex was in the warmer coat, they tossed the bags into George's SUV and walked next door to Adam's Market.

"Hey John," George greeted as they entered.

"Hello there, George," the man, John, Alex assumed, replied. "And who is this?" He tilted his head towards Alex.

"Um, Alexander Hamilton, sir," Alex stated, extending a hand for the man to shake.

"Alex's is staying with Martha and I for awhile, so you'll probably see him around, John."

"I look forward to it then." John shook Alex's hand and then turned back to his counter. "So, I see you're believing the weather man?"

George chuckled. "Well, figured I better be safe than sorry, you know?"

"You're not the only one. Had a bunch of the regulars call in for orders."

Alex wandered away from the men as they talked about the impending snow. He glanced out the window towards the other shops. There appeared to be a bakery and a diner down the street. An antiques store sat off to the side. But across the street, across the street stood a sight that nearly made Alex's heart skip a beat: a bookstore.

He stood there staring through the window at it until George came up behind him. "Alex," he gently prodded.

"Yes, sir?" he replied with a startle.

"I don't know about you, but I could go for a strong cup of coffee." George patted him on the back. "John's going to hold our groceries so we can go across the street for one."

Alex nodded and followed George out of the shop. He expected George to turn towards the bakery or the diner, but instead he walked towards the bookstore. George held the door open for him once they reached the storefront.

"Best place in town for coffee," he said with a wink.

"George, you flatterer," a woman called from behind the counter. "You are too kind."

"Well, you do make the best cup in town, Catherine." George ushered Alex forward. "Alex, I would like you to meet Catherine Schuyler. Catherine, this is Alexander Hamilton."

"It's nice to meet you, Alex," Catherine greeted.

"Thank you, ma'am. You too."

"Oh, you have a polite one on your hands, George." Catherine walked out from behind the counter. "You boys want some coffees I heard?"

"Yes, I think we would. Alex, how do you take yours?"

"Um, whatever you are having is fine," Alex replied, not wanting to be difficult.

George smiled at him. "Okay. Why don't you walk around a bit while I get the coffees? Pick out some books for yourself."

"I—"

"I told you that you needed more than just dusty old law books laying around that room of yours. Go on." George gently pushed him towards the shelves of books. "Take your time. I'll be over by the coffee counter up here."

Alex swallowed and nodded his head. He slowly made his way through the aisles, glancing at books as he went. He could easily pick out a few, hell probably even more than that, without trying. But he didn't want to impose. He didn't want to seem greedy.

"Hello, there!"

Alex startled, nearly falling into a bookcase at the sudden voice.

"Oh look what you did, Angie!"

"I didn't do anything but say hello!"

"Are you okay, dude?"

Alex's head spun with the onslaught of voices and his surprise. He felt a hand gently touch his shoulder. He blinked, opening his eyes to the sight of three girls, all around his age, kneeling by him.

"Um…hi?"

"You have a way with words don't you?" one giggled.

"I'm sorry?" Alex replied in confusion.

"Ignore my sister," the second girl interjected. "Angelica doesn't always remember her manners. I'm Eliza. The other one down there is Peggy."

Alex bit his lip before speaking. "Alexander Hamilton…Alex I mean."

"Pleasure to meet you, Alex," Angeica continued. "And I am sorry for startling you. I've just been bored all afternoon."

"Well, you could have been doing homework like the rest of us," Peggy chastised. She appeared younger than the other two.

"Oh come on, Pegs," Angelica huffed. "We probably won't have school tomorrow anyway. Not with all that snow."

"She's right, Peggy," Eliza commented. "Snowstorm Draco is supposed to hit."

"Too bad it's not the real Draco," Angelica laughed. "What I wouldn't give to see Draco Malfoy walk into town."

"May I ask who that is?" Alex questioned, finally feeling brave enough to interject himself into the conversation.

"Wait, you don't know who Draco Malfoy is?" Peggy all but yelled.

"Um, should I?" Alex asked.

"Have you read Harry Potter before?" Eliza replied kindly.

"Or at least seen the movies?" Angelica huffed.

Alex shook his head.

"Have you lived under a rock?" Peggy asked.

"No," Alex sighed. He thought carefully as to how he wanted to respond. "I didn't but I did live somewhere that I didn't have access to a lot of modern literature. My old school just had the classics. I couldn't really afford to buy books and I didn't really know anyone who had them."

"Oh you poor boy!" Angelica added dramatically. "We have to fix this." She grabbed Alex by the hand and pulled him towards the back of the store.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked.

"I'm about to change your life!" Angelica laughed.

"Wait, I—"

"There's no point in arguing with her," Eliza told him with a smile. "If she has her mind on something, she is hard pressed to stop."

"Oh hush," Angelica shot back. "I'm just doing my job."

"Our mom owns the shop," Peggy explained.

"Oh," Alex responded.

"So we know our way around," Eliza added. "Do you like to read? We should probably ask that before we keep going."

"Very much so," Alex said.

"Then you must let us pick some out for you!" Angelica exclaimed.

"I don't know," Alex cautioned. "My…my foster father told me to pick out a few but—"

"You came in with George, didn't you?" Eliza interrupted.

"I did but—"

"Knowing George," Angelica continued, "he will be more than happy if you came back with more than a few."

"I don't know." Alex ran a hand anxiously through his hair. "I was just going to get one or two."

"Let us at least pick out one from each of us," Eliza countered. "And if it is too much, George will tell us."

"I don't know…"

"You have to at least try Harry Potter," Angelica said, handing him the first book. "It's always good."

"Do you like science fiction and fantasy much?" Eliza asked.

"Um, I loved _The Hobbit_ as a kid, but never got to read the rest of Tolkien's works."

"Then you should invest in _The Lord of the Rings!"_ Peggy squealed, running off to pull the books from the shelf.

Eliza laughed at her sister as she turned around to pull a box set of books from behind her. "I think _Game of Thrones_ may also be up your alley. Tell, me what types of things do you enjoy?"

"I usually read history books. Those were the easiest to get my hands on."

"Have you read _Les Miserables?"_

"Always wanted to," Alex replied.

"Here," Angelica said, handing him the classic. "What else?"

The afternoon passed in a similar fashion. The girls all chimed in with recommendations and questions for Alex. After awhile, he nearly forgot he was there with George and that he was supposed to be meeting up with him.

"There you are," George said with a chuckle. "I see you've met the infamous Schulyer sisters."

"Mom's right, you know? You are the flatterer Mr. Washington," Angelica teased.

"Sorry for taking so long," Alex anxiously added.

"Yeah," Eliza continued. "We lost track of time. We wanted to help Alex find some books we thought he would enjoy."

"That's quite the stack you kids have there." George knelt down and looked through the impressive set of books the girls had compiled.

"I wasn't planning to buy all of them," Alex quickly emphasized. "I—"

"Harry Potter?"

"Yes, sir," Alex replied, biting his lip nervously.

"Just the first one?"

"Well, I—"

"Eliza, sweetheart, can you put this back and get the box set with all the books instead?"

"Sure thing, Mr. W." Eliza did as she was asked, leaving a shocked Alex in her wake.

"Sir?"

"What? No one can't read just the first in that series." George gathered up the books in his arms. "You kids did a nice job. These are all wonderful." He stood and took the books to the counter. Alex watched as he stacked all of them by the register and waited on Eliza to add to the already expensive purchase.

"I told you," Angelica said, nudging Alex's shoulder. "Mr. W is one of the good ones."

Alex cast his gaze to the floor at her words.

"Have Laf give you our numbers," she continued. "Keep in touch." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and gently shoved him forward.

"Hey," he finally spoke, "thank you."

The other sister gave him similar goodbyes before he finally joined George near the door.

"Thank you, sir. You really didn't have to do all this."

"I know, son," George replied, "but I wanted to. You looked happy surrounded by all the books."

"I," he started, biting his lip nervously again, "I am happy with books. I like to read."

"Good." George took the books and placed them in the car. Snow had started to fall and was already gathering in clumps on the road. "We want you to be happy, Alex. I know it will take time and that none of this is easy, but we do want that."

Alex swallowed thickly and nodded.

"Now, let's get our groceries before John decides the snow is too high for him to drive home in."

With that, they gathered their bags from the store and packed up the car. Snow started to fall faster, big flakes caked to their coats. George's phone chirped with texts as they finished packing everything into the backseat.

"Lafayette just texted. He cut his plans short due to the weather. He's heading back to the house with one of his friends, John."

"Okay," Alex replied, sliding into the passenger seat of the car.

"The snow is really piling up out here."

Alex nodded then sheepishly added, "Angelica thinks school will be cancelled tomorrow."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was." George carefully drove along the slick roads, going slowly and keeping an eye on the weather the entire time.

By the time they pulled into the driveway, there were a few inches already. Alex carefully got out of the car, shivering as his feet sank into the slushy piles of snow. He had just recovered from the cold shock when he felt an even colder shock hit hard against his face. He fell back, unsure of what had hit him in the face, and banging his shoulder into the side of the car.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry!"

"Alex!"

"Merde! We're so sorry! Alex?"

Alex reached up with a shaky hand to wipe at his face. He felt the snow and ice sliding down his face from whatever had hit him, as well as the rest coating the back of his jacket.

"Alex? Son?"

Alex looked up to see George looking worriedly down at him.

"We're so sorry Alex!" Lafayette called from somewhere off to the side. "It is all my fault, mon ami! I ducked and—"

"No," an unknown voice added, "I shouldn't have thrown that so hard! I'm so sorry!"

"Boys," George chimed in to the others. "It's okay. Let's just give Alex a moment. Easy there." George put his hands under Alex's shoulders and pulled him up from the ground. His hand brushed against the shoulder Alex had banged against the SUV moment ago, causing the boy to hiss in pain at the touch. "I'm sorry, son." George checked the limb carefully. "I going to imagine it is just bruised. But—"

"I'm okay," Alex quickly stated. He allowed George to help him to his feet. "I'm fine; really. Sorry to—"

"Not at all! It really was our fault," Lafayette stated. "I'm really sorry, Alex."

"Me too," the other boy added. "I'm John, by the way. Hell of a way to introduce myself."

Alex looked at the boy, John. His freckled face showed concern. "Alex." He extended a hand for John to shake.

John seemed to sag in relief. "It's nice to meet you. Are you okay?" He released his grip on Alex's hand and pointed to his shoulder.

"Yeah. Surprised me more than anything. What was that anyway?"

"Snowball," John explained with an infectious smile. "I was trying to get Lafayette. He keeps throwing snow down the back of my jacket."

Alex smiled back at the boy. "I've never really made a snowball. I didn't realize that's what it was."

"Really? If you'd like, I can show you how to make one? I could use a partner to get back at Lafayette."

"Hey!" Laf yelled, making both boys and George laugh at his annoyance.

Alex looked back at George, who had moved back to the side of the SUV. He should help with the bags, but…

"Go on, Alex," George said, as if reading the boy's mind. "I've got the bags. Don't worry. Go have fun."

"Okay," Alex said.

"Come on then," John added, extending his hand.

Alex bit his lip.

 _I can do this._

He took John's hand.


	3. Chapter 3

Snow continued to cascade from the grey sky as the boys played in the growing piles. Alex's gloved hands shook slightly as he learned how to form snowballs, whether from the cold or nerves he was not sure. Everything was so new, especially the rather cute boy helping him. He powered through regardless, learning how to pack the snow tightly so that it did not break apart before reaching its desired target.

"Hey!" John yelled as Lafayette pummeled him with two snowballs in a row.

Lafayette laughed loudly in return. "Who's the best? C'est moi!" He danced around in victory, until John returned fire of his own. "Merde!" Lafayette cursed as John hit him square in the face.

Alex smiled at their antics. He leaned down to gather snow of his own to join in the fun. His chest ached from the cold, forcing the persistent cough to return once more. Alex nearly slipped on snow and ice as he tried to recover. He struggled to catch his breath for a moment and shivered as the cold continued to seep through his layers of clothing. After a moment, Alex felt a hand on his back, gently rubbing.

"Easy there," John soothed. "Are you okay?"

Alex nodded as he tried to suppress another cough.

"That doesn't sound okay." John guided Alex to sit down in the snow. Lafayette didn't notice the exchange; he was busy building up his ammunition of snowballs on the other side of the yard. "Just relax. It's alright." He continued to rub Alex's back until the boy caught his breath.

"Th-thanks," Alex replied shakily. Another shiver ran up his spine; John had to have felt it.

"Cold?"

Alex nodded after a moment. "Not used to this type of weather."

John chuckled. "I kind of got that from the whole 'never made a snowball' comment earlier. Where're you from?"

Alex swallowed thickly. "Puerto Rico. Was raised there. Lived in Florida for a little while before coming here." He rubbed at his chest. "Not really been anywhere that gets this cold before."

John squeezed his shoulder. "What do you say we get Laf and go in for awhile then? I bet we can get Mrs. W to make some hot chocolate."

Alex nodded and let John help him back to his feet.

"Everything okay?" Lafayette asked, jogging over to them.

"I'm fine, Laf," Alex lied, rubbing his chest a little. "Just not used to the cold."

Lafayetted looked him up and down, causing Alex to shift nervously. "Are you sure, mon ami?"

"I'm okay." Alex gave him a small smile in return.

"Thought we could go in for some hot chocolate," John added. "Think Martha will mind?"

Lafayette smiled at that and slung an arm around Alex's shoulders. "I don't think she would deny the three of us!" He ushered the others into the house. They all paused at the front door to take off their boots and outer layers. John helped Alex; he was still unsteady on his feet and nearly fell trying to unlace his clunky boots on his own.

"Thanks," Alex told him. "I'm sorry. I know I ruined the fun and—"

"Dude, you didn't," John interrupted quickly. "That's the first time in years I've been able to get a leg up on Laf with a snowball fight in years! Our friend Herc, big teddy bear of a guy don't get me wrong, but he always teams up with Laf and the two of them pummel my ass until I look like Frosty the Snowman."

Alex huffed out a laugh at the image. John looked nothing like the puffy snowman. He was, well, he was rather adorable, yes. But his arms were well defined, even under the thick hoodie covering them. And his face, the freckles and long hair…

"Thank you, again," Alex replied. He slid out of his coat, shivering even more once the layers were removed.

"Don't you lot look half frozen."

They looked up to see Martha coming out of the kitchen.

"It's getting worse out there, ma'am," John greeted.

"Oui," Lafayette continued. "And our Alex is not used to the cold yet." Lafayette rubbed Alex's cold arms.

"Oh dear! We didn't even think!" She scurried over to Alex and looked him over for herself. "Come now. Let's warm you up. I have dinner in the oven, but I think some hot drinks are in order for you three while it finishes." She ushered them all to the kitchen and pushed Alex into a seat.

"Dinner smells lovely," John complimented, taking a seat next to Alex at the bar.

"You are welcome to stay for it, sweetie." Martha poured a bit of milk into a pot and set it on the stove to heat. "Actually, with the way this weather is going you should probably call your grandmother and stay here for the night."

"She's actually away." John fidgeted in the seat. "She took my younger sisters and brother to visit my dad and his new girlfriend in South Carolina. I don't go anymore."

Martha nodded. "Well, then you should stay with us until the storm passes. You can always walk back home once theirs a break in the storm to collect some things."

"I wouldn't want to put you out or—"

"You and Herc are over so often that I forget you have homes of your own to get back to half the time." Martha poured the cocoa mix into the pot and stirred for a moment. She then poured each of the boys a mug. Lafayette took his from her while Martha carried John's and Alex's to them. She pushed an errant curl from John's face. "It will be no trouble at all. You are welcome to the spare bedroom up by Lafayette and Alex."

"Thank you, ma'am," John said with a smile. "I appreciate it."

"Of course." Martha turned to Alex. "This ought to warm you up some, sweetie." She rubbed his shoulders. "I'd imagine this is the coldest weather you've had to experience yet."

He nodded. "Yeah, um, it's normally fairly warm in the winters in Puerto Rico. It wasn't too hot in Florida when I was there."

"How long did you live in Florida?" John asked.

Alex bit his lip, cursing himself for mentioning the state as bad memories of the Kings and hospitals crept into his mind. "Four months," he replied curtly.

John must have understood on some level that Alex was uncomfortable. He didn't say anything else about it, but did change the subject. "So what's for dinner tonight? Hopefully something warm for Alex's sake."

Alex sent him a grateful smile. Martha squeezed his shoulder as she replied to John. Alex zoned out for a moment, not hearing the conversation. At times, he couldn't truly believe how much had changed in the last four months, and how much hadn't. Everything was supposed to be getting better, yet he didn't feel it. Sure, the Washington's were better than the kings by leaps and bounds from what little he could see. But, he still felt poorly. His chest ached and the cough wouldn't go away. He did not believe either could be blamed on the weather. Yet he couldn't bring himself to talk to them about it. Not yet.

Alex settled into the conversation, allowing the others to talk more while he sipped at the hot drink. Eventually, George came down and helped Martha finish dinner. Alex wasn't hungry. He knew he should feel hungrier, but he never was. So he sat through dinner with the others, pushing his food around on his plate and eating enough to get by. He could get by. He had to.

"Alright, kids," George said once dinner was eaten. "You should go up for bed."

"But it's not like we'll have school tomorrow," Lafayette whined, causing the others to laugh.

"Probably, but they haven't announced anything yet, son," George teased. "So…"

"Fine," Lafayette sighed.

"Same for you two." George nodded towards John and Alex. "Alex, I put those books on your shelf, next to the legal books."

"Thank you, sir," Alex said, relieved to hear that George hadn't taken any of the old books away. He had been enjoying those as well, though it would be nice to read the new books that the Schuyler girls had suggested.

"Do you need help with the dishes, Mrs. W?" John asked as he stood.

"I think George and I can handle it," Martha replied. "Go on up and get settled in your room. I'm sure one of the boys can lend you something to sleep in for the night."

"Come on, John," Lafayette continued. "I think you left some sweats in my room from the last time you were over."

With that, they left George and Martha to clean the kitchen and headed upstairs. John followed Lafayette into his room while Alex continued down the hall to his own. He shut the door behind himself and changed into a warm pajamas. Despite the furnace and the fireplaces throughout the house, Alex was still cold.

Just as George had promised, all the books were lined up neatly on the shelves. George had also left the bags of clothing on top of his dresser. Alex debated putting them away, but the pull of a warm bed and new books won out. He quickly brushed his teeth and pulled his hair out of its bun. He then grabbed a new book and climbed under the covers. The snow continued to fall in thick clumps outside his window, but the blankets provided the protection he desperately needed.

For that reason, he found himself faced with a dilemma when there was a knock at his door just as he started the second chapter. He didn't like the idea of just letting someone into his room, not while he was lying in the bed like that. It made him feel too vulnerable. But he was just so cold…

"Hey, Alex, it's John! Can I come in for a second?"

Alex shifted anxious under the covers. He lifted the edge, but the cold was still too unbearable. He groaned to himself. He wanted to trust the boy, but trusting never worked out. Then again, maybe…

"Y-yeah. Come in," Alex called from the bed. He pushed himself up on his side so that he was leaning on his elbow by the time John opened the door.

"Hey man," John greeted. He rubbed at the back of his neck. Alex could see his freckles standing out against the slight red of his cheeks.

"Hi." Alex closed his book and pushed it to the side. "What's up?"

"Um, well, I just wanted to see if you were okay?" John's face grew even redder the more he spoke.

Alex smiled a little at the other boy. "You can sit if you want."

John returned the smile and sat on the end of the bed by Alex's feet. "Thanks. So, are you? Okay I mean? It's just, you didn't sound good earlier. Not that I think your voice is bad or anything. But that cough was—"

"It's okay," Alex interrupted John's rambling. "I know what you meant. I'm okay. Promise."

"Really?"

Alex sighed deeply. "I'm not from here so the weather just got to me." He shrugged. "And, um, well I may have had some bruised ribs before I got here." John's eyes widened at the comment, causing Alex to look down at the bed sheets. "Not the best combination." Alex was still looking down when John took his hand again.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. But, just so you know, I get it. I really do." John cleared his throat. "George and Martha are some of the best people I've ever seen. Really. Not bullshitting."

Alex laughed a little at the boy's frankness. "I'm trying to see that." He ran a hand anxiously through his hair. "Thanks."

John nodded. "So what were you reading?"

Alex moved his arm off the book so that John could see the cover. "The first Harry Potter."

"Dude that's a classic! Though not the best in the series."

Alex bit his lip. "I've never read all of them. I read this one years ago, but it's been awhile. George gifted me the set today. Well, he bought a lot of books but I thought I'd start with these."

"You've never finished them?"

"Never really had access to them," Alex quietly admitted. "I…well I grew up in a part of Puerto Rico that didn't have a lot of resources or money. My m-mom tried." He took a deep breath. "But there wasn't a lot of work in the area. She mainly travelled to the nicer areas in the next town for housekeeping work and stuff. Nothing major. So we stayed in the areas where she could afford. Schools kind of reflected the area. Not many options in our library as a kid. We had the first one, but not the rest. Though I did get to read a lot of memoirs and history books one summer. Employee of my mom's had a nice collection…she let me stay in the library and read while mom worked. But other than that, there wasn't a lot."

"That's rough," John commented. "My mom bought them and read them all to me as a kid. Haven't really read them in awhile though, not since she died."

"I'm sorry."

John gave him a sad smile. "Thanks. It's been awhile." He picked at a thread on the blanket. "You know what they say about time."

"'It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone,'" Alex quoted, blushing as he spoke.

"What's that from?"

"Um…I read it in a book once. Think JFK's mother said it."

John laughed at him. "History books, huh?"

"Something like that," Alex replied with his own smile.

John patted Alex's leg where it extended by him. "Alright. I should let you get back to your book."

"You're fine."

John blushed. "Not too bad yourself either, Hamilton."

Before Alex could really respond, John stood from the bed and headed out of the room. Alex stared at his retreating form, trying to decide what the boy meant.

"Laurens, I like you a lot," he said to himself, with a chuckle.

Alex slid down into his bed and laid the book onto the nightstand. He clicked the light off and settled under the blankets once more. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep, nor did he stay asleep for long. The storm continued to rage outside, the winds increasing in their gusts as the night passed. It wasn't long before Alex woke in a panic due to the loud noises.

He jerked awake, eyes darting around the room as the winter wind reminded him of a storm of a different nature. He groaned and wiped a hand over his face. The wind beat against the glass. His hands shook as they came down from his forehead.

"I'm in the Washingtons' home." _Woosh._ "I'm in Mount Vernon." _Bang._ "Virginia." _Thud._ "Not…" _Swish._ "…the island." He gulped as the final word left his lips. He pulled his legs up to his chest and tried to wait it out. Yet the panic continued to build, growing the longer he stayed there. His eyes drifted to the window, watching as the snow swirled and pushed against the window until he couldn't take it any longer.

He stood from the bed and grabbed a hoodie—the same one Martha had given him his first day with them. It was quickly becoming a favorite. He slid it on and walked downstairs. He wanted a space that lacked windows for right now.

He made his way as quietly as possible to the den on the first floor. The gas fireplace crackled in the room, giving off additional, and much welcomed, heat. Alex felt weird walking into the room at night, alone. The Washingtons had repeatedly said that the house was his as well; that he was welcome to walk around at will.

His hands continued to shake as he took the throw blanket from the back of the couch. He pulled it tightly around himself and sat on the couch. His body remained tense, his mind still focused on the wind despite not seeing it. He could still hear it. It wasn't as loud, but it was still there, banging and swooshing past the house at gusting speeds. All too familiar speeds.

"Alex? Is that you, dear?"

The sudden voice startled Alex, causing him to fall from the edge of the couch. He landed in a pile of limbs and blankets in the floor. He blinked his eyes and soon focused on a pair of slippers and the edges of a purple robe.

"Alex?"

"I'm sorry," he quickly apologized. He tried to convince his limbs to move, but the wind picked up outside and he froze.

"Oh sweetheart."

He felt Martha's hands on his shoulders and back, rubbing gentle circles into the tense muscles.

"You're safe. It's okay."

She pulled him into a sitting position and into her side. She carefully wrapped her arms around him and let him have a few moments like that.

"Just relax, Alex. It's okay. Just listen to my breathing. That's all. You're good. Just breath with me. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Can you count with me? Try to count with me, dear.

Alex could feel the panic continue to build as breathing became more difficult.

"I—"

"Try this sweetheart. Un. Deux. Trois. Quatre. Cinq. Six. Sept. Huit. Neuf. Dix. You can do it, Alex. It'll be okay."

Alex tried again. Breathing in and counting on the exhales just as Martha did. His mind focused on the French words and eventually the pain in his lungs eased. He coughed. He always coughed. But breathing returned to normal.

"I'm so sorry," he repeated, his face feeling hot and no doubt red from embarrassment.

Martha hugged him against her side. "Nothing to be sorry about."

"I woke you up." He rubbed at his face. "How did I do that? I was so quiet."

Martha laughed a little at his astonishment.

"Oh, sorry," Alex continued. "I didn't mean…I didn't think I said that out loud."

Martha pushed errant strands of his hair behind his ear. "You were very quiet. You did not necessarily wake me with any sounds." Martha stood and motioned for him to do so as well. "But, no child in this house has ever been able to move about at night without me noticing." Her smile was warm as Alex stood. "I don't know about you, but I could go for some warm milk."

Alex nodded and allowed her to guide him towards the kitchen. He shrunk away from the windows and wrapped himself back in the blanket once he was seated at the bar.

"This always helped calm my Jacky at night." She pulled the milk from the fridge and turned around for the pot. "He was never a fan of storms either."

"Jacky?" Alex cautiously asked.

Martha turned on the stove and set the milk over the fire. "He was my son." Alex's brow knit in confusion as he thought over what she had just said. "I was married once before George. I was young. Probably too young really." She smiled sadly at him. "We had two children together. Patsy and Jacky. My first husband died when the children were young. Car wreck. He tried to drive through a bad thunderstorm and didn't make it through. Jacky hated storms from that day on."

Alex nodded. "I get that."

"I can imagine you do," she replied sorrowfully. She poured the milk from the pot into two mugs. "However, I think that is all you would have had in common with Jacky. Patsy, though, you two would have gotten along well. She loved her books." Martha smiled wistfully.

"I—would have?" Alex bit his lip and took the mug from Martha's outstretched sipped from it, enjoying the added warmth.

Martha sat next to him on the adjacent barstool. "They passed long ago."

"I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have—"

"I brought them up," Martha interrupted. "You did nothing wrong, dear." She sipped from her mug. "Patsy had epilepsy. Spent a lot of nights walking around the house, making sure she was okay, getting up when she wasn't." She squeezed Alex's shoulder. "George always teases that I have a six sense for when people are moving about the house at night after her."

"I'm sorry," Alex repeated.

"Thank you." Martha gave his shoulder a final squeeze. "Want to tell me what brought you downstairs then? Was it the storm?"

"Wind," he mumbled.

"The wind?"

He nodded. "It…it's not as strong as…" He trailed off and motioned with his hands to indicate before. "But it's loud."

"Reminds you of before? Of _the_ storm?"

"Yes…" He sipped at the milk, letting the mug hide his face. "I-I couldn't stop looking at the window."

"Would imagine that made things worse."

"You'd be right," Alex scoffed.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of, Alex." Martha rubbed his back gently. "You've been through more than most adults go through in a lifetime. Nothing wrong with have times where you may need a little help."

Alex didn't reply, not sure his voice would remain as steady as he wanted it to. Instead, he drained the rest of the milk.

"Come on, sweetheart. Let's get you set up for bed again."

Alex sighed and followed Martha out of the kitchen. He started to turn towards the stairs, dread filling his chest again, but Martha turned towards the hall leading back to the den instead.

"M-Martha?"

"It's okay, Alex. I think coming to the den was a smart idea. No windows."

Alex nodded. "Yeah." _But the noise is still there…_

"And I think I have a solution for the sound as well."

Alex watched her set up the couch with nearly every pillow and blanket in the room. She motioned for him to lie down as she crossed the room. She stopped at the desk and dug through the drawer for a moment. "I could have sworn I left this down here. Where –aha!" She returned to the couch clutching something small in her hands. "Here we go." She handed it to Alex.

"An iPod?"

"It belonged to Laf once upon a time. He's upgraded so many times I've lost track of which one it is. He gave it to me so that I could listen to songs while working from time to time in here. There's a mix of genres. He's, eclectic." She smiled fondly at the description. "There's everything from French hip hop to classical. Should be something that drowns out the wind."

"Thank you." Alex hesitated, internally debating with himself for a moment before finally giving Martha a one armed hug.

"You're welcome, dear." She rubbed his back once more and gently pushed for him to lie down. She pulled the blankets over him, almost tucking him in. "Get some sleep." She smoothed down the blankets one last time before walking towards the hall. "If you need anything, just come get me. You won't be a bother."

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you again."

Martha smiled at him and turned off all the lights. Alex sighed against the pillows. The couch was surprisingly comfortable and the extra heat from the fireplace made him feel warm for the first time in awhile. He pulled up the classical genre on the iPod for noise and put the headphones in his ears. The music drowned out the wind nearly instantly.

Alex soon fell asleep with the sound of Bach playing softly in his ear and images of a certain freckled face boy playing in front of his eyes.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter may be a bit slower to finish. I'm heading out to San Diego on Tuesday for Comic Con so not sure how much time I will have for writing and updates. I will do my best! Thank you all for the feedback and for reading! It means so much!


	4. Chapter 4

Alex woke to the sounds of gasping and sputtered curses; to a hand gently tugging at his shoulders.

"Shit," a voice added. "I'm so sorry, Alex! I didn't mean to wake you. I'm sorry."

Alex blinked his eyes open. John's face swam in front of him, concern creased into his forehead. The headphone lay discarded on the pillow by his head. The music had ended long ago. The blankets were still pulled high around him. But his shirt, it was wrinkled and pulled down. The too large fabric had moved in the night, revealing more of his chest. His very scarred chest.

John's eyes went back and forth between the scar and Alex's face. "I'm so sorry Alex. I thought…when I saw…I thought you were bleeding. I'm so sorry. I—"

"It's just a scar." Alex wasn't sure who he was trying to convince, himself or John. He sat up and pulled the blankets around his body tightly. John walked across the room towards the couch. He started to sit then paused. "You can sit. I'm not mad, John."

John bit his lip and finally sat. "I'm still sorry. I shouldn't have intruded like that."

Alex shrugged. "Not like this is my bedroom or anything." He rubbed at his eyes tiredly. "I couldn't sleep so came down here. You couldn't have known."

"Still, I shouldn't have reacted like that."

Alex scoffed. "Of course you should. It's ugly." He closed his eyes tightly, hating himself for saying the words as soon as they left his mouth. He hated this. Hated talking about it. Hated himself for talking about it.

"No! That's not why I acted that way at all!" John twisted so that Alex could see his face. "I thought you were hurt. From back there, I just saw the red. I thought you were bleeding. I was worried."

"Oh…" Alex bit his lip and stared down at the floor. His mind whirred with thoughts of how unpleasant the scar looked and the damned memories attached to it.

"Alex, can I ask what happened? Or at least if you're okay? Please?"

"I don't…" He paused, chewing on his lip once again.

"You don't have to, Alex. I don't want—"

"I don't love talking about it," Alex continued, "but I'm okay now." _I hope._ "I, um, I had a heart defect when I was born. Ventricular septal defect."

"Hole in the heart?"

"How did you—"

"I read a lot of medical books," John replied with a blush and a shrug. "I want to be a doctor."

Alex nodded before continuing. "Um, well, they didn't catch it until I was twelve. I was sick so they ran tests and, well, it was there and really causing a lot of problems. Probably had been for awhile." Alex ran a hand through his hair. "We couldn't really afford a doctors when I was growing up. So it just…they never really caught it til then." His hands shook as he brought them up to the hem of his t-shirt's neckline. "I had surgery when I moved to the states a few months ago. It got infected. And I apparently scar easily anyway." He heaved out a frustrated sighed. "So it looks like this. I'm really sorry it scared you so much." He dropped his hands back to his lap, keeping his eyes on the ground until he felt an arm slip around his back.

"Thank you for sharing that." John pulled him into a one armed hug. "I know that had to be hard." He squeezed Alex's shoulder. "Are you sure you feel okay though? I mean, sounds like the surgery wasn't that long ago."

Alex thought for a moment. _I still feel like shit. I always have._ "Yeah," he lied. "Things are better. It's better than it was." He tried to give John a small smile. "Thanks for asking."

"You two are up awfully early," George greeted them, rounding the corner of the den.

Alex startled a little at the voice and shifted away from John ever so slightly.

"Yeah Mr. W," John responded. "Figured I'd check to see if we had school."

George chuckled. "You have a snow day. I just checked."

"Yes!" John exclaimed.

"Oh to be young and have snow days," George added with a grin. "Can I interest you two in coffee? Laf and Martha are still sleeping."

"Yes, sir!" John said while Alex muttered a soft "Yes, please."

"Come on then." George motioned for them to follow him into the kitchen. "I can fix breakfast if you two would like. Martha can take care of Laf once he decides to join the land of the living."

John scoffed. "That won't be for a few more hours. He wasn't planning on setting an alarm."

"Shocking," George teased. "Well, I checked the news when I turned on my phone. Schools are going to be shut down for the week. More storms are coming in tonight." George switched the coffee maker on and added the beans. "John, you should walk to your house and pick up some things this morning while there's a break. I can't get the cars down the driveway, but you should be safe to walk to and from if you go before the next storm."

"Yeah, for sure. I called my gran last night. She wanted to thank you for letting me stay. She's stuck in South Carolina for awhile. No plane will fly back with all the storms, so she's just waiting it out at my father's."

"Stay as long as you need," George insisted. "What would you two like this morning? Cereal? Eggs? Oatmeal?"

"Whatever is fine," Alex answered softly.

"Something warm," John asserted, smiling kindly at Alex.

"Hmmm, oatmeal?"

"Please," Alex said to George. He then mouthed a silent thank you to John.

George set about fixing the oatmeal on the stove. John poured coffee for the three of them while Alex watched him. It felt oddly domestic and comfortable. Neither of which Alex ever expected.

"So, Alex, would you mind coming with me to pick up some things? I don't know if I'll need help. I may have to shovel out some snow to get to my door. Could use a hand."

"Yeah, sure." Alex inwardly celebrated at the idea of spending more time with John, especially outside of the Washington's home.

"Good thinking, John," George praised. "Take some shovels from the garage. There should be a sled hanging on the wall too. All your tools and bags should fit in it on the way to and from. Make it easier on yourselves. Walking in the snow will be a chore all it's own."

John groaned. "Don't remind me."

"Is it that hard?" Alex asked timidly.

"You'll soon see," George laughed.

"You're used to sand right?" John questioned.

"Yeah, of course."

"Think that, but worse."

"Can't be that much worse," Alex mumbled.

"Again, you'll see," George teased. He placed bowls of steaming oatmeal in front of each boy. "So, John, did you enjoy the movie with Laf and Herc last week? He mentioned you had gone."

"Eh, was more Herc's thing than mine," John replied. "But the dude playing the lead was pretty cute, so that made up for it."

Alex paused at John's words while George simply laughed. "Of course there was," he continued, much to Alex's astonishment.

George and John continued with small talk filling the space until the bowls were empty. Well, all but Alex's.

"Not hungry, Alex?" George inquired.

"Oh," Alex startled, "um, I'm not usually very hungry at breakfast." It wasn't a lie. He wasn't hungry at breakfast. But he also wasn't hungry at any meal really. "I'm sorry you went to the trouble of—"

"It's no trouble," George interrupted, clapping Alex on the shoulder. He took the bowls over to the dishwasher. "You two should get ready and head over to John's soon. Snow is supposed to hold off until this evening, but you never know when it can change."

"Yeah, probably smart," John agreed. "Feel up to it, Alex?"

"Sure," he answered. "Just let me change."

"Yeah I need to do the same."

"Go on," George added. "I'll grab that stuff from the garage for you both."

The boys thanked George and headed upstairs. Alex layered his warmest clothes onto each other and found a pair of wool socks in one of the bags from George. He donned a thick beanie and clunky boots as well. He knew he would still be cold, but it would be a small sacrifice to make.

He met John back downstairs by the door. Martha and Laf continued to sleep in their respected rooms. George had left their supplies on the porch for them before going to take a shower of his own.

"You ready?" John asked with a grin.

"As I'll ever be."

John laughed a little. "You don't have to come if you don't feel up to it."

"No, I want to come." Alex shrugged. "Plus you'll need help."

"Alright, let's go then." John opened the door and stepped onto the porch first. The cold air smacked Alex in the face, but the sight of the thick piles of snow took his breath away more than the air.

"Holy shit," he gasped.

"Took the words out of my mouth." John clapped him on the shoulder. "Watch your step coming off the porch. There's usually ice that collects there."

Alex nodded and carefully followed John's path off the porch. His feet slid despite the care he took. John noticed almost immediately and grabbed his shoulders to steady him.

"You okay?"

Alex nodded and tried to take another step. He succeeded this time and managed to make it to the end of the yard. John pulled the sled, which Alex was grateful for, as they walked.

"I just live two blocks up. It's not too far."

"That's fine." Alex took a step and sunk into the snow more than he expected. "Son of a bitch," he cursed.

"I warned ya," John teased.

Alex struggled but eventually took another step, sinking in yet again. "Okay, you did. You were right. This has nothing on sand. Damn it."

"You'll get used to it. Here, just walk where I step. That should help. " Alex did as John suggested, only stepping in the footprints John left behind. In doing so, he was able to make it to John's without falling flat on his face.

"Hand me a shovel, please," Alex requested.

John handed him one and took the other for himself. "Watch me, alright?" John demonstrated the best way to shovel. "Just like this. Best way to do it so you don't hurt your back."

Alex nodded and did as he was told. It took some time, but they dug out enough to be able to get into the house. They left the shovels and the sled on the front porch and entered carefully.

John paused at the foyer and slipped out of his boots. "Um, do you care to take off your boots? I just, I don't want my grandmother to have a mess when she comes back."

"Of course." Alex followed John and removed the snow-covered shoes. He then trailed behind John as the other boy went through the house towards his room.

"I'm just up here." John pointed up the stairs before taking them two at a time. Alex was slower in his own climb, but it allowed him to glance at the various pictures on the walls. He paused at a photo of a younger boy with John's unruly curls sitting on top of a young woman's lap.

"That's my mom," John explained.

Alex startled. He hadn't realized that John had walked back down the stairs to his side.

"I'm sorry I—"

"Nothing to be sorry for. They're there to be looked at."

Alex nodded, biting his lip as he thought of what to say. "She's pretty."

John practically beamed at the compliment. "She was. She was the best." John straightened the picture on the wall. "Miss her a lot. Don't get me wrong, my gran is amazing and I'm not sure what I would do without her, but still."

"I get that," Alex replied softly.

John smiled. "My dad, we just don't get along. Don't agree on anything really. And he's a politician. But not like Mr. W. He doesn't exactly put his family first, like George. No, it's all about career and how we can make him look better." John rolled his eyes. "Why I live here. My siblings go back and forth a lot more, but mainly stay here. Just easier."

"I'm sorry," Alex said.

"Thanks, but not your fault."

Alex shrugged this time. "Yeah, but I get shitty dads." His words were barely above a whisper.

John reached the top of the stairs and nodded. "You too?"

"Something like that." Alex didn't elaborate and John didn't press.

"I should probably warn that my room always looks like a bomb went off in it," John stated instead.

Alex laughed and followed him into his bedroom. "It's not so bad."

"You are too kind." John rummaged through the clothes on the floor and grabbed some jeans. He then dug through the drawers for the rest. "Can you throw me that duffle bag over there? The one in the corner?"

"Yeah." Alex grabbed the bag and tossed it to him. "Here."

"Thanks!" John shoved everything into the bag and zipped it up. "Let me just grab my backpack." John didn't realize that the backpack was unzipped. The contents spilled out as soon as he lifted the straps. "Shit!"

Alex leaned down to help him pick up the various papers and books. He lifted a set of loose leaf pages that all contained drawings and doodles. He flipped through them for a moment before working up the courage to speak about them. "D-did you draw these?" He handed them to John.

John blushed and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Yeah, I did."

"They're amazing."

John's blush deepened. "I just like to doodle when I'm bored."

"You're good," Alex complimented, a blush of his own creeping onto his cheeks.

"Thank you," John replied. John cleared his throat. "Can you hand me those books please?"

Alex recovered after a moment and handed everything over to John for his backpack. John finished packing up everything and zipped it tightly.

"We should probably head back," John said after everything was packed away. "Laf is probably awake by now and building up his snowball armory without us."

Alex smiled at that. "We can't have that."

"No we can't!" John replied with a laugh. "Come on." John gathered up his bags and took off for the stairs. Alex lagged behind once more. They slipped their boots back on and made their way out of the house.

John locked the doors while Alex stepped down off the porch. Alex's feet skid on the snow and ice. He fell with a hard thud.

"Alex!" John skid in the snow behind him, helping him up. "Oh my god! Are you okay? Alex?"

Alex took a moment to focus. He back ached from fall, and his hands shook from the shock.

"Alex?"

He nodded quickly to John. "I'm okay. Just didn't expect that. I'm okay."

John ran his hands over Alex's arms and shoulders. "Are you sure? That was quite the fall."

"Yeah," Alex responded, his voice stronger than before. "Yeah, it doesn't hurt that much. It's fine. I'm fine."

"Here, let me help you up." John extended a hand and gripped Alex's tightly. He pulled him up. Alex wavered, falling into John a little. "Easy. I got ya." John helped Alex gain his balance. His hand never let go of Alex's.

"I'm good; thank you." Alex took a deep breath and finally noticed John's bags in the snow. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I made your bags get wet and—"

"I'm not worried about that," John assured. "Just you."

Alex blushed once more. "Thank you."

John let go of Alex's hand to grab his things. He tossed them onto the sled and stepped off the porch. Alex carefully followed. John paused at the beginning of the sidewalk and waited for him. As soon as Alex was by his side, John reached down and took his hand. Alex tried to hide the pleasant surprise from his face.

They walked the rest of the way to the Washington's hand in hand.

xxxxx

John was greeted by a snowball to the face as soon as he stepped foot into the yard.

"Success!"

Alex turned to see Lafayette dancing on the other side of the yard in victory. Another boy high fived Laf and smiled as John cleaned the snow from his face.

"That wasn't fair!" another voice called from the other side of the yard. Alex looked up to see the Schuyler sisters rolling their eyes and shaking their heads at the boys.

"Yeah you ass," John finally replied once the snow was off his face. "You could have hit Alex instead!"

Laf looked remorseful at that and glanced at Alex. "Sorry," he apologized.

"Hey Alex," Eliza and Angelica yelled by way of greeting. Peggy waved at him from beside them.

"So this is Alex," the boy by Laf spoke. He walked over and extended a hand. "Hercules Mulligan. Call me Herc."

Alex looked the larger boy up and down. "Alex Hamilton."

"Good to meet you," Herc said, shaking Alex's hand firmly. "Laf mentioned you would be coming back with John."

"I see you have already met the girls," Laf added, walking over. He squeezed John's shoulder. "Sorry for the surprise attack. I couldn't pass it up."

"Yeah, yeah," John replied, rolling his eyes.

"Yes," Alex said to Laf. "I met the girls at the bookstore."

"Have you started reading anything," Eliza asked as the girls made their way over.

"I started Harry Potter last night," Alex responded.

"Yes!" Angelica exclaimed.

Alex laughed at her excitement. "It's good. I forgot how much I liked it."

"Good." Angelica gave him a kiss on the cheek. "So, now that they're back, can we get on with this 'epic battle' already?"

"What battle?" John questioned warily.

"Can all team up," Herc replied. "There's enough of us."

"There's an odd number of us," Peggy whined.

"Yes, but you can't aim for shit," Angelica retorted. "So it won't really be an advantage if one team has an extra person in you."

"Hey!"

"You can be on mine and Alex's team," John interrupted on Peggy's sake. "Right Alex?"

"Of course," he replied, in shock that John was so adamant about him joining his side again.

"No way I am on their team then! I call Laf and Herc," Angelica countered.

"Can I join your team then?" Eliza asked of John.

"Hell yeah," John called, pulling Eliza into a one armed hug. "You picked the winners after all."

"I beg to differ mon amis!" Laf teased.

"It's on!" Herc yelled.

John ran his bags into the house and returned to his team quickly. Both sides set about building up their armory of snowballs and creating a plan. It wasn't long before chaos broke out on the front yard. Alex didn't even know how he got into this. The boy who had never made a snowball before had now taken part in not one, but two fights with this rather interesting group of people. Not only that, but he was good at it.

"You sure you've never done this before?" John pressed with a smile.

Alex bashfully returned the smile. "Can't say that I have."

"You're good. You're good with strategy," John continued.

"Really?" Alex asked in shock.

"You are," Eliza agreed, squeezing his shoulder. "I've never seen anyone be able to best Herc and Laf."

"Hey!" Herc yelled.

"She has a point, mon ami," Laf sighed. "No one else matches my tactical practical brilliance!"

"Oh god," Angelica moaned.

Alex laughed at their antics. The laughter made his chest ache after a moment. He coughed, doing his best to cover the sound in his arm. However, the moment left him vulnerable and open for attack. Angelica pummeled him with snowballs, one after the next as he tried to recover. He fell under the onslaught, sliding down into the cold snow. The coughing worsened along the way.

"Alex!" someone cried out. He couldn't tell who it was. He was too focused on trying to breath, something that was becoming much worse.

He felt hands pull him out of the cold snow and onto his feet. John. It was John once again.

"Hey?" John inquired soothingly. "You with me? You okay, Alex?"

"I'm so sorry!" Angelica added. "I didn't mean to go at you so hard!"

"I'm fine," he eventually croaked. He cleared his throat. Breathing was still hard but coming a little nonetheless. "Promise."

"You sure? You looked like you couldn't breath for a moment," Eliza questioned, looking him up and down.

"Yes. Just had the wind knocked out of me," he lied.

"Do you feel up to continuing?" Laf asked softly. "Don't feel like you have to, mon ami."

"Yeah," John assured. "We should probably all pack up for the day soon anyway. The clouds look like they are ready to burst any moment."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, I, um, it's pretty cold."

"Go get warmed up," Angelica said. "I'm sorry for covering you in snow like that." She rubbed at his arms.

"It's okay." He bit his lip and thought of something to say that would take their eyes off him. Stop those worried looks. "When you got skin in the game, you stay in the game."

Angelica laughed. "Damn straight!"

Alex managed to catch his balance and walk into the house. He took off his boots at the door and slowly made his way up to his bedroom without anyone noticing how poorly he felt. Or so he thought. He had just gotten his wet clothes off and a warm pair of sweats on when another coughing fit hit him and his door creaked open.

Hands guided him to sit on his bed and rubbed at his back until the fit passed. He looked up to see Eliza staring back at him with concern.

"I—"

"This isn't just the cold air is it?" she inquired. The words should have been harsh, but coming from her they sounded gentle and caring.

"I'm fine," he lied again.

She smiled sadly at him. She continued to rub his back. "You don't have to fake it. Not around anyone here."

"I'm fine," Alex repeated.

Eliza sighed. "You can trust the Washingtons." Alex tensed under her hands. "I know what it's like to feel like you can't. But you can."

Alex just shook his head at her words.

"Angelica and I saw our fair share of bad homes when we were in the system."

"What?" Alex gasped, eyes darting to meet her own.

"Thought that might gain your attention." She smiled sweetly despite her words. "Angelica and I lived in orphanages and foster homes for a few years before the Schuylers adopted us. They thought they couldn't have children, well until Peggy came along a year after we were adopted." She giggled a little at the memory before turning more somber. "Took me awhile to trust them. To feel like I could go to them with things."

Alex stared at the floor. "How?"

"How?"

"How did you get to a point where you thought you could trust them?"

Eliza took his hand in hers and squeezed. "I realized I was tired of hiding and living in fear. That I didn't want that for my life."

"You don't know what I want for my life though," he whispered.

"You're right. I don't pretend to know the challenges you're facing." She smiled kindly. "But I can say that I've been there. And that I can tell that you want this."

Alex swallowed thickly.

"Just, if you don't think that you can tell them something yet, please tell one of us. I know we all just met you, and you us, but we take care of each other. Have for as long as I can remember."

Alex nodded. Eliza kissed him on the cheek, much like her sister had done earlier, and stood from the bed. She left Alex reeling, his head spinning as he thought of her words.

He wanted to believe her. But he just couldn't. Not yet.

* * *

A/N: Probably the last chapter for a week or week and a half as I'll be out of town starting Tuesday :)


	5. Chapter 5

Alex woke to sweat dripping from his face, soaking his shirt and sheets. He shivered and pulled the damp blanket around him. He cursed his nerves. This had to be a result of anxiety. Couldn't be anything else. Just nerves. After all, he was starting at his new school in just a few hours.

His body ached as he got out of bed. He shook.

"Fucking nerves," he muttered to himself as he pushed himself towards his bathroom. Once inside he nearly gasped at his reflection in the mirror. His face was paler than it had been since before the surgery. To make matters worse, he also noticed red spots on the whites of his eyes. It made it a lot harder to blame his state on anxiety.

He took a deep breath and shook his head. "I'm fine," he lied to himself. "I'm fine."

He repeated the words like a mantra as he disrobed, leaving the sweaty pajamas in a pile on the floor. He stepped into the shower and turned the water on as hot as he could in hopes of stopping the frustrating shivering. It helped at first, but did little to help in the long run. He stepped out of the shower, only having changed the sweatiness of his appearance. He didn't look well.

He tied the towel around his waist and slowly walked back to his dresser for clean clothes. His muscles complained with each step and the walk left him out of breath for a moment. He paused to catch his breath once he reached his destination then chose a warm sweater and pair of jeans. There was still an ample amount of snow on the ground from last week's storm, and more was expected to fall sometime before the weekend. But the roads were clear for now and schools were opening once more.

Alex rubbed a hand over his face and sighed. He grabbed a pair of shoes from under his bed, opting for Chucks and thick wool socks. Once both were secure on his feet, he stuffed his backpack with notebooks and pens. He then made his way downstairs.

"Alex? Is that you?" Martha called from the kitchen.

He swallowed thickly and turned at the bottom of the steps. He inched closer to the kitchen until he saw Martha at the counter buttering breads and slicing fruits.

"Hey sweetheart," Martha greeted.

"Good morning, mon ami," Laf added as well.

"Morning," Alex said quietly, trying to suppress a cough that tickled the back of his throat.

"Coffee or juice?" Martha asked. She set a plate of toast, eggs, and fruit at the bar for Alex.

"Coffee, please." He could only hope that helped clear his head

"Are you okay, Alex?" Laf questioned gently. "You don't look so good."

"Yeah." Alex slid onto the chair next to Laf and took a bite of toast. It felt like lead as it made it down his throat. "I'm just nervous about my first day."

Martha placed a mug of coffee in front of him. "First days are hard, but I think you'll enjoy this school. And the administration is looking forward to having you."

"Huh?" Alex muttered.

"Eat." Martha pushed his plate closer to him and sent him a look until he took another bite of toast. "George and I sent your old test scores from Florida—the ones from when you first started school? They were very impressed by how high it was across domains, especially considering that you had never been in the school system here."

"My mom was a good teacher," Alex stated firmly, blushing at the kind smile Martha gave him in return.

"I have no doubt that she was. You're very bright, Alex."

"What grade will you be in?" Laf piped up around a mouth full of strawberries.

"Chew, swallow, then talk, Laf," Martha sighed fondly.

"Um, I actually don't know," Alex replied. "I think I was a freshman in Florida." Alex bit his lip, debating what to say. "Um, but I was really bored." He looked down at his place after he finished talking.

"Alex will be placed in the sophomore class given his test scores," Martha clarified.

"What?" Alex gasped.

Martha pushed some loose strands of hair behind his ear. "The administration sees your potential, just as George and I do. We don't want you to be bored in school. That will do no one any good. So, they agreed that you could be placed in the honors course load for sophomores. The spring semester just started, so you'll only be a little behind I would imagine."

"Yeah, we haven't really delved into much yet, especially with the weather," Laf explained. He clapped Alex on the shoulder. "I'm in that same track and grade. Most of the group you met is, except for Angie and Peggy. Angie is a grade above and Peggy is a lot younger…she just doesn't act it." Laf rolled his eyes and smiled at the thought of the youngest Schuyler girl.

Alex nodded, inwardly cheering that he would likely have familiar faces in his classes. He turned back to his plate and forced a few more bites of food down his throat.

"Are you sure you feel well, sweetheart?" Martha inquired. "You do look a little pale this morning?" She reached up to feel his forehead, but Alex flinched backwards. "Alex?"

"S-sorry," Alex stuttered. "But I-I'm fine. Promise." Alex sent a wavering smile to Martha. "I just didn't sleep much. That's all."

"Alex—"

"May I be excused? I forgot to put my hair up earlier."

"Go ahead, dear," Martha said with a small sigh.

"I'll meet you by the front door," Laf instructed. "I'll drive us to school."

Alex nodded again and carefully made his way back to his room. He was breathless by the time he reached his door and black spots swam in front of his eyes. His body shivered as he pushed his way towards his dresser. His pale and sweaty reflection greeted him. His forehead was warm to the touch as he pulled his hair back and into a messy bun at the back of his head. His hands shook as he secured it with a hair tie. He tried to take a deep breath, but it was useless.

"Alex! Allons-y!"

Alex sighed and pushed himself back down the stairs.

"There you are, mon ami," Laf greeted at the bottom of the stairs. "Ready?"

"Allons-y," he replied in a much softer tone than Laf's boisterous one.

"You will be wonderful!" Laf threw an arm around Alex's shoulders and guided him out of the house to his car. "Just you wait!"

Alex smiled at Laf's enthusiasm and praise. "We'll see." He avoided a patch of ice and slid into the car. Laf followed into the driver's seat. "I'm just ready to get back into it all. I haven't been in school for weeks now. I hate it."

Laf smiled as he started the car and pulled out of the driveway. "You are a rare one, Monsieur Hamilton. Most would relish in missing classes for so long."

Alex shrugged. "Guess I'm not like most."

"Good for you." Laf clapped him on the shoulder. "You will fit right in with our little group of revolutionaries."

"I'm sorry?"

Laf laughed. "The instructors and administration…they all joke that our friends are growing up to be little revolutionaries in the, eh, political and social scenes. We are not shy in our opinions, nor are we terribly soft-spoken."

Alex laughed in return. "What makes you think I will fit in with that?"

"You will; you'll find your voice in the crowd."

Alex shook his head. "Most of the times, that's my problem. People get tired of me running my mouth. Gets me into trouble. Always does." He looked out the window, regretting the revelation as soon as he finished speaking. "Lots of brains but no polish. No one likes that."

"It sounds to me like you were running with the wrong crowd, mon ami. And that your other foster parents were stupide for not listening to you more."

Alex bit his lip at Laf's words.

"Martha was not lying, Alex. They see your potential. They see you."

Alex glanced at Laf with raise eyebrows.

"What? I am trying to go for motivational peptalk here! Give me a break."

Alex huffed a laugh.

"Look," Laf continued, "all I mean is that we do want to listen to you. We want to help you. We want to see you happy. That is all mon ami."

"Thank you."

Despite Alex's quiet tone, Lafayette practically beamed at the acknowledgment. The rest of the drive was quiet as they rounded the corner and pulled into a sparse parking lot. Lafayette took a spot near the main sidewalk and motioned for Alex to follow him into the school.

"I'll take you to the main office so that you can meet the principal and obtain your schedule."

"Okay. Thanks." Alex struggled to keep up with Lafayette's long strides, but managed to stay as close as possible.

"Oh, before I forget," Laf exclaimed as they approached the main door. "The last period of the day for sophomores is electives, meaning that you should be allowed to choose whatever class you are interested in that is still open."

"What type of electives are open?"

"Well, I'm in journalism. We aren't a large class so you should be able to get into it if you would like. We write the school paper. Some of us cover local stories and things from the school, but there are some openings. Angelica is editor. She's been wanting someone who could write larger political pieces and opinions."

"Really?" Alex practically lit up at the mention of those topics. "Do you think she would let me try?"

Lafayette shrugged. "I don't see why not. She would at least let you try I would think. John writes some pieces like those at times, but he largely covers local news in the paper. Eliza does school news mostly and occasionally fashion or culture. Herc works on the sports sections from time to time. But he also shares the fashion and culture side with Eliza every now and then. Others write for more sections. It's a small team but we make do if you are interested. If you don't think you would like it though, there are other classes you could choose. There is marching band, cooking, shop class and—"

"No," Alex interrupted. "I think I would like it. How do I get in?"

Laf opened the office door. "You have to let the secretary know so that she can add you."

"Let me know what, Monsieur Lafayette?" the secretary asked with a smile.

"Bonjour, Ms. Mulligan." Laf leaned over the front desk and planted a small kiss to her cheek.

"Oh stop that," she laughed. "I should tell on you to Herc for that."

Laf laughed in return. "Madam, I would like you to meet Alexander Hamilton. He shall be starting today."

"Herc mentioned that you had a new addition to your home. Hello, Alex." She extended a hand. "If you haven't guessed by now, I'm Hercules's mother. I run the main office."

"Hi," he quietly replied. "Nice to meet you."

"And I you." She sent him a small smile. "I have your packet all ready to go. Just need to add your final electives. We have a few options left."

"Laf mentioned a journalism course. C-can I join that, please?"

"Of course dear. I'll add you to that and print up your schedule for you then. Principal Franklin is waiting for you in his office. Why don't you knock?"

"I'll wait out here for you," Laf stated. "I'll show you where your first class is at least."

Alex nodded and slowly made his way to the principal's door. He knocked twice and stood back to wait. It only took a few seconds for a bespectacled older man opened the door for him.

"Hello there," he greeted. "Mr. Hamilton I presume?"

Alex nodded then added a "yes sir" as an afterthought.

"Come in my boy." Franklin motioned for Alex to come into his office. "Take a seat there. Can I get you anything? Coffee or tea perhaps?"

Alex looked at him in confusion before declining the offer.

"Now, I promise this won't take long. I'm sure you are eager to begin your classes. From what I can see of your records you have quite the aptitude for academics."

"Th-thank you, sir."

Franklin smiled and took a seat across from him. "But I also know that you have not been able to attend school frequently."

"No sir. I'm sorry, sir," Alex quickly apologized.

"No need for apologies, Mr. Hamilton. I would imagine that it was not your fault."

Alex bit his lip and nodded.

"Now, we will do our best here to help you catch up to your peers. From what I have read from your last school, the behavior your principal labeled as, oh how did he put it—"

"Delinquent," Alex provided with a blush.

"Ah, yes. That deplorable label! I would imagine it was more boredom than misbehavior. And more likely other external factors."

Alex squirmed in his seat.

"I'm sorry," Franklin quickly apologized. "I do not wish to bring up bad memories for you. Rather, I wish to encourage you to use this as a fresh start. No one besides myself has read your record. Others have seen your test scores, however. That I could not keep silent. You have impressed quite a few of the faculty members here."

"Sir?"

"Don't be surprised, my boy," Franklin laughed.

Alex blushed at the words.

"Again, I say all this as a compliment to you and to encourage you to take this as a new opportunity. Now, I would imagine you want to get to class on time. Go on. I'm sure your packet has been printed."

"Thank you, sir." Alex left, feeling confused and disoriented by the principal.

"Hey," Laf greeted. "I have your stuff for you." Laf handed him a folder of papers. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Alex replied, rifling through the packet. "Franklin is…"

"Yeah," Laf laughed. "He's an eccentric, but he's a good guy." Lafayette slung an arm around Alex's shoulders. "How's your schedule?"

"Um, looks like history, biology, English, math, then lunch. After that, gym, speech and debate, and journalism."

"Gym sucks, but you only have to do it for one semester out of all four years of school. Angie is in there now I think. John has your morning classes in that order I believe. Herc and Eliza may be in some as well."

"Okay."

"Come, I'll show you to history."

"Yo, guys!" a voice yelled once they reached the hallway.

They turned to see John jogging down the hall towards them.

"Hey," Alex softly greeted.

John reached up and squeezed Alex's shoulder. "Ready for your first day, man?"

"I think so," Alex answered with a shrug. "I have history first."

"Sweet! So do I," John replied enthusiastically. "Want to walk with me? I can show you around."

"Um…" Alex sent Laf a look. The boy shot him a very knowing smirk and nudged him towards John. "That would be great."

"I'll catch you guys at lunch!" Lafayette said before heading towards his own class.

"Come on then!" John reached down and took Alex's hand in his. The gesture was becoming a habit, one that Alex could definitely see himself getting used to in the long run.

xxxxxx

Martha greeted Alex and Lafayette at the door later that afternoon as he shuffled his way into the house.

"How did it go, sweetheart?" she asked, standing from her place on the hall bench and gently shaking snow from Alex's coat.

"Okay," he replied.

"Did you like all your classes?"

"Most," he sighed. He let his backpack fall off his shoulders and onto the ground. Everything hurt. He could barely lift his arms and the very thought of taking off his jacket felt too much.

Martha sent him a confused look at his answer. "Most?"

"No one enjoys our gym classes, Martha," Laf clarified with a small shiver. "Mr. Jefferson is difficult, to say the least."

"Jefferson? As in Thomas?" Martha continued, opting to help Alex out of his thick jacket.

"The one and only," Laf scoffed. "He finished grad school two years ago and couldn't find a job teaching like he wanted."

"I thought he planned to teach political science at a university?" Martha added.

"That was his goal, yes," Laf continued. "But no one would hire him from what I heard. So he fell back on home and asked Franklin to find any position that he could teach."

"Lucky me it was gym," Alex groaned, his muscles protesting as Martha pulled his coat off the rest of the way.

"That bad?" Martha enquired. She pushed Alex to sit on the bench she had just vacated. He knew he was shaking under her hands.

Alex bit his lip, not wanting to discuss it with her. None of his other foster parents would have cared. Then again, nearly everyone he had met had assured him that the Washingtons were different. With a sigh, he ran his hand through his messy hair and began talking. "I was late. I hadn't been to my locker all day so Angelica took me to it and showed me how to work it. We were like a minute late, so Mr. Jefferson was mad about that. Then he realized I didn't have gym clothes on me and was annoyed at that too. I mean, I didn't know my schedule until I got to school this morning!" He paused to take a deep breath. "Angie had a spare shirt she was able to lend me and convinced one of the other guys to lend me a spare pare of shorts after Mr. Jefferson threatened to give me a zero for the day if I didn't participate. And apparently you can't participate unless you have gym clothes…"

"Oh sweetheart." Martha sat next to him and rubbed his sore back.

"But because that took up more time than if he had just let me wait or just do whatever in my clothes, he made me do double the warm up laps everyone else had to do. So I spent the whole period running laps while he yelled at me to go faster when everyone else got to play basketball I think."

"Jefferson thinks he is god's gift to the school," Laf interjected. "The guy is only like twelve years older than us but treats us all like we are bratty children who inconvenience him daily."

Alex started coughing while Laf spoke. "He sucks," he spat out between coughs.

Martha smiled at his frankness. "How did your other classes go?"

"Good," he replied, clearing his throat and taking a breath. It hurt. It had been hurting since that damn class. Damn Jefferson…

"Alex has already been assigned a topic to debate in class," Laf bragged.

"Really?" Martha exclaimed excitedly.

"Um, yeah," Alex explained. "Mrs. Franklin thought my discussion points in class were good today so she said that I could go ahead and put together and argument for the mini debate Friday."

"That's fantastic Alex!" Martha gave him a small hug.

"He'll verbally kick Burr's ass!" Laf laughed. "Of that I have no doubt." He ruffled Alex's hair, much to the boy's annoyance. "Speaking of verbally kicking ass…Martha, Mrs. Schuyler moved the poetry slam to tonight. Is it still okay if I go?"

"As long as your homework is done." Martha stood and started to go towards the kitchen. She paused in the hallway. "Alex, you may go as well if you would like."

Alex nodded and waited for Martha to leave before he turned to Lafayette. "What's a poetry slam?"

"Ah! Well, it is like a poetry competition. Kind of. Everyone who wants to participate brings original poetry to the Schuyler's bookstore. She does one round of the competition every month. She's just starting tonight for the new year."

"So you just read poetry?"

"Mrs. Schuyler's employees, well not her girls of course since they compete, judge everyone on their performance. They look at quality of the writing as well as how you deliver it to an audience. They usually break it down so that everyone is facing off against an opponent. The one with the higher score will move onto the next round and be expected to present a new poem."

"That all sounds really cool," Alex admitted with a blush. "H-how do you enter?"

"Oh, that's easy! All you have to do is show up with a piece of original poetry and sign up! No advance notice. Mrs. S just sorts everyone randomly after she receives the names and we go from there. Why? Would you like to enter as well?"

"I wrote a lot of poetry back in Puerto Rico. It's all in my notebooks."

Laf smiled. "Then you better go pick out some. We'll leave in two hours." He clapped Alex on the back and went off towards the kitchen.

Despite the soreness and the ache in his chest, Alex smiled at the thought of his new evening plans. He skipped the kitchen and hurried to find a poem that he felt comfortable sharing with an audience.

Lafayette found him an hour and a half later with notebooks and loose pages surrounding him in his bedroom.

"Woah!"

Alex startled at Lafayette's voice. "Oh, hey, Laf."

Laf shook his head and smiled. "Have you found something in this…mess?"

"It's not a mess," Alex defended. Laf raised his eyebrow and motioned to the paper covered floor. "Okay maybe it is, but I was having a hard time picking the right one."

"Well, we have to go soon. So do you think you can settle on one?"

Alex sighed and looked back at his lap. The notebook was his last set of poems in Puerto Rico, written during the first days of the hurricane when he was locked in the attic. They were raw, but they were good.

"Yeah," Alex mumbled.

"Good, allons-y then, mon ami." Laf helped Alex up from the floor. Alex groaned and rubbed at his chest once he was standing. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just sore from gym. Fucking Jefferson…"

Laf nodded in agreement. "Come then, let's go enjoy the rest of the night and forget about him!"

The two left with a quick goodbye to the Washingtons and a promise to Martha that they would eat at coffee shop. Alex spent the drive reading through his notebook one last time. By the time they parked across from the bookstore, Alex had firmly decided on the one he would read. He bookmarked the page and followed Laf into the store.

"Hey guys!" Eliza greeted at the sign in counter.

"Hey 'Liza," Laf returned. "Not participating tonight?"

"Nah, sitting this round out. Nothing original that's very good. I'll catch the next set. I have some things I'm working on."

"Good," Laf continued. "Well, I have a newbie with me for the night." He clapped Alex on the back. "Think you can help us get him registered?"

"Of course! Welcome, Alex." Eliza beamed up at him and set to work at getting the boys registered for the night. It wasn't long before Alex had his paperwork done and his name on the board.

"Let's grab some food and find the others," Laf said once Eliza was done with them.

Alex nodded and followed Laf to the counted. They ordered coffees and the dinner special of soup and sandwiches. It didn't take long for their order to come up and then soon joined the rest of the group.

"Hey," John greeted. "Saw you were joining in the fun, Alex!"

"Yeah, you get the pleasure of competing against Burr," Angie sarcastically interjected.

"Burr? That guy from my debate class?" Alex asked, sitting down next to John at the table.

"That's the one," Herc sighed.

"Burr is the worst," Laf said, rolling his eyes.

"You'll do great, Alex," John stated, nudging his shoulder with his own.

Alex tried to cover his blush with his coffee mug. Lafayette's smirk didn't help matters much. Thankfully, Mrs. Schuyler announced the beginning of the event, calling John up to start things off with his poem.

One by one, people went up to battle against another until Aaron Burr was called up to the makeshift stage. He gave a good performance, nothing spectacular but it was obvious the boy was proud of himself. Alex clapped politely along with the others and waited his turn. Mrs. Schuyler called for him to come up to the stage. He clutched his notebook tightly against his chest as he walked towards her. He took a deep breath once up on the stage, closed his eyes, and then launched into a far more animated and engaging performance than Burr had just done.

"What's going on?

What's going on?

Suddenly I find the electricity is gone!

What's going on?

What's going on?

We are powerless

We are POWERLESS!

"Yo! Yo! They're throwing bottles in the street!

People lootin' and shootin'

They wanna see a robbery,

We gotta keep movin'!

"Oh god, so much panic!

The crowd was manic

With everybody screaming and shoving

And shouting

And slapping

And everyone's frantic!

What's happening with you?

We are POWERLESS!

We are POWERLESS!

We are POWERLESS!"

Alex didn't open his eyes again until the audience began applauding and shouting praises at him. He stared in shock as everyone smiled and complimented him, some even tearing up at his words.

The judges announced his scores a few moments later, declaring him the winner against Burr. His friends all hugged and cheered him at the announcement. Alex was too surprised and caught up in the celebration to notice the glares that Burr sent his way.

xxxxx

"Shit," Alex gasped between shaky breaths. He rubbed at his chest. His vision was blurry as he walked down the hall and he didn't even notice John in front of him until he slammed into him.

"Oof!" John muttered. He caught Alex before the boy could fall. "Hey, are you okay?"

"S-sorry." Alex wheezed as he spoke.

"No, don't worry about it. What's wrong though? You don't look so good."

"Gym c-class…"

"Fucking Jefferson," John cursed. "What did he make you do this time?"

Alex sighed. His first week had been going well, except for gym. Jefferson did not like him; that much was obvious. He couldn't tell why, but the man's actions and words made it glaringly obvious.

"Said I wasn't r-running fast enough. So m-made me do extra laps and ran along side me to time me. Kept y-yelling when I couldn't keep up at the pace he wanted me to do."

"Son of a bitch!"

"Basically," Alex huffed. "Then had me join everyone else for t-touch football. He made a rule that I had to be given the ball to run so that I could run more no matter who caught the quarterback's throw. S-so I basically spent the last hour running nonstop with Jefferson yelling at me to go f-faster."

"Damn, Alex. I'm so sorry!"

Alex shrugged and hacked loudly. His chest was killing him by this point. "I'll live."

"Come on." John slung an arm around Alex's shoulders and guided him to speech and debate class.

Alex groaned as he took a step. "Why is Jefferson such a dick?"

John snorted. "I don't know man, but he is. Has been since he stepped foot in the door here. But hey! At least you have Mrs. Franklin next and you get to debate Burr."

"Yeah," he sighed, "but Burr's not been much nicer to me the last couple days."

John rolled his eyes. "Burr's just pissed because you beat him at the poetry slam."

"Really?" Alex coughed as he said the word.

John rubbed is back. "Yeah. Aaron's used to being the top dog in that competition. And you knocked him out in the first round! It was amazing, dude!"

"I don't think he sees it that way." Alex rubbed his chest as they entered the room and took their seats. Burr glared at him as he walked past the boy's desk. John glared back on Alex's behalf.

"Ignore him," John said as they sat down. Alex nodded, continuing to rub at his sore chest. "Hey, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," Alex replied. Lafayette threw himself into his own desk and shot Alex a disbelieving look as he heard the conversation. "Really. Promise. Just sore from gym."

"Merde," Laf sighed. "Jefferson not letting up any?"

"Nope." Alex ran a hand over his face. He noticed how badly they shook when he did so, and hoped the others did not see as well.

"Angie said he's been horrible," Eliza said, catching the end of the conversation as she took her seat. "Are you sure you're okay Alex? You look pale."

"I'm fine. I promise."

Before Lafayette and John could argue, Mrs. Franklin arrived and called the class to attention. She provided updates and asked questions regarding readings they had all been assigned before turning to Alex and Aaron.

"Okay, class, today we will be listening to Aaron and Alex debate immigration laws. Just as a reminder, Alex will be arguing for immigrant rights while Aaron will be arguing for stricter immigration laws. Regardless of your opinion on the matter, please take note as to the performance and how well each argues their side. Remember to let them finish completely before you give your feedback. Alex will go first with his argument and then Aaron will follow. They will have time to counter each other as well. Any questions?" No one spoke up. "Alright then. Aaron, Alex, please come up to the podiums and begin."

Aaron shoved past Alex as they walked to the front of the class. Alex sighed and tried to ignore it. He didn't have the energy to bother calling him out. He wanted to save up for the debate instead.

Alex began, lying out he ground work of his argument and building his foundation. He drew upon history, immigrants who shaped the United States from the very beginning. He added in politics and human rights. He briefly detailed stories from the island of those who wanted to immigrate for new opportunities and why that mattered. It was beautiful and the class speechless. Well, all but Burr who sighed at various points much to Alex's annoyance. After his allotted fifteen minutes, it was Aaron's turn.

Aaron's details were well researched, even Alex could agree with that. But they lacked passion and heart. It was obvious the man did not truly have a stance on the argument. He was articulate, but he didn't compare to Alex. The class appeared to zone out rather than attend to his words.

"Alex, you may now form a brief rebuttal," Mrs. Franklin spoke once Aaron had finished.

"Thank you, ma'am," Alex started. "And thank you, Aaron for bringing up some very important issues." Aaron sent him a look, raising his eyebrows at the other boy. "You were right. There is an issue of morality regarding immigrants and work. However, it is not their morality that I would call into question. You discuss how they are taking jobs away from fine American citizens, yet, are the immigrant workers choosing themselves for these jobs? No. Employers choose these immigrants over citizens in an attempt to increase their profits. Now, with this in mind, does this reflect the morals of hardworking people who are desperate for work or the money hungry corporate world trying to further their own gain? The question of morals does not necessarily impact the rights of immigrants in the way that you are suggesting. Rather, it is an argument to suggest that we should create more stringent rules for employers, not employees."

Aaron blinked at Alex as the class applauded.

"Aaron, would you like to counter with anything?" Mrs. Franklin interrupted.

"I…well…"

"Aaron?"

"No ma'am," he huffed begrudgingly.

"Very well, then," the teacher continued. "Boys, you both had well thought out arguments. However, Aaron, you were more analytical. It can be a good strategy, don't get me wrong, but it lacks a hook. You don't necessarily draw the audience in, and if you can't get an audience on your side, well…"

Alex smiled as Mrs. Franklin went on to praise his work. The class provided feedback in the same vain, expressing more positive for his work than Burr's. Aaron stood silently, taking it in, but it was obvious he was annoyed by the critique. Alex felt a rush at the end, knowing that he had done well and please the instructor. However, his exhaustion and soreness crept up as soon as they were asked to take their seats once more. Alex slumped into his desk, rubbing at his chest while Laf and John high fived him and Eliza clapped him on the shoulder. Alex tried to muffle the coughing fits that threatened to escape for the rest of the class.

Mrs. Franklin then spent the final minutes of class assigning the next argument, Eliza against someone whom Alex had not really met yet. When they were dismissed, Aaron was quick to corner Alex in the hallway.

"What the hell was that?" Aaron all but spat at him.

"What are you talking about?" Alex mumbled around a coughing fit.

"In there! You made me look like a fool!" Aaron continued.

Laf stepped up beside Alex. "Burr—"

"No, stay out of this," Aaron went on. "I am slow to anger but—"

"Slow to anger?" Alex managed to interrupt. He blinked, his vision swimming for a moment. "It does not appear that way. It appears as if you can not accept a fair defeat. I did nothing amoral or disrespectful. It is not my fault that Mrs. Franklin and the class found my argument to be more sound, nor was it my fault Mrs. Schuyler's staff liked my poem earlier this week. I have done nothing to you." A cough punctuated the sentence.

"Bullshit," Aaron countered, taking a step closer to Alex. "I look back on where I failed this week, and in every place I checked the only common thread has been your disrespect!"

"Disrespect?" Alex sighed. He rubbed his chest where the ache had turned to a sharper pain. "I won't apologize when I have shown no disrespect. I showed my work, my opinions. I did what was asked of me. That's all."

Aaron rolled his eyes. "Let me offer you this advice, don't let them know what you're against or what you're for. That's not the point of these."

"Really?" Alex gasped. "Look, I know that isn't always the point of a debate in class. But if you stand for nothing Burr, what'll you fall for?"

"At least I didn't bog my argument down with bleeding hearted stories! I don't see why anyone bought that."

"Excuse me?" Alex replied, feeling the anger course through him.

"You heard me," Burr continued. "None of that was fair. You played your own immigrant card and turned it to your advantage! I was set up to fail because of that. An immigrant arguing for immigrant rights? Yeah, that's a fair fight."

Alex could see his friends bristle around him at Aaron's words. He felt the blood rushing through his veins, could hear it loudly in his ears. He felt dizzy as he stepped towards Aaron. His body shook.

"I didn't choose the side! I was assigned!"

"You should have turned it down then!"

"Oh my god, are you serious?" Coughs interrupted each word as he spoke.

"Yes!"

Alex opened his mouth to further the argument, but only painful hacks came out. They stole his breath as pain shot through his chest again. His vision blurred. He briefly saw Aaron's mouth moving, but the words never reached his ear. He heard nothing. He saw nothing.

Not Lafayette stepping forward to silence Aaron so that they could check on Alex. Not John grabbing his shaking body as he started to collapse. Not Eliza running off to get help.

He only saw black…

* * *

A/N: I apologize for the delay! Between traveling and everything it took me a little longer. The next chapter is already in the works though and I will do my best to not take forever with it! Also, to note, the poem that Alex reads in this chapter is the song "Blackout" from the musical In the Heights, also by the wonderful Lin Manuel Miranda :).


	6. Chapter 6

"I'm going to kill Burr!"

"Laf," Eliza sighed. "Stop pacing and stop threatening Aaron."

"Yeah," John huffed. "It's Jefferson you should be threatening."

Eliza smacked John's arm. "Not helping!"

"It's true!" John replied, rubbing at the spot where she had hit him. "Alex said Jefferson made him run for like an hour before the debate class. I doubt that helped whatever is going on."

Eliza rubbed her forehead and sighed again. "Whatever is going on, I doubt that it can be simply blamed by just one person or thing." Laf stopped and both he and John opened their mouths to start arguing. "Guys," Eliza quickly continued, "you talking like this won't do anyone any good, especially Alex. Instead, can we focus on what we should be doing right now? Like calling your parents again, Laf? And John, I thought you were going text your grandmother?"

Both boys looked sheepish as Eliza finished speaking.

"Look," Eliza said softly, "I know you're scared. So am I! But we have to take care of this first. We have to try to help Alex." Her voice cracked a little at their friend's name. "Did the school nurse get ahold of your parents before the ambulance showed up, Laf?"

"No," Laf replied, pulling out his phone. "George didn't have his phone on and Martha's went to voicemail. Both had work meetings and things all afternoon. I'll try though." Laf clutched his phone tightly and stepped towards the side of the room away from others.

John had his phone out as well and appeared to be sending rapid-fire texts to someone. Eliza nudged his shoulder a little. "I didn't mean to sound cruel," she muttered gently.

"You weren't," John sighed. He set his phone down and ran a hand over his face. "I'm just worried. I knew Alex didn't look good before class, but to see him go down like that…"

"I know." Eliza placed a hand on John's shoulder. "It was terrifying."

John nodded in agreement. "I should have pushed him to go to the nurse or something when I saw him before class. I shouldn't have let him go in there. Maybe—"

"If we're going down that route," Eliza interrupted, "then maybe I should have pushed him to talk to the Washingtons last week when he left the snowball fight early."

"What?"

"I followed him up to his room. I didn't think he looked well and I wanted to check."

"And?"

"He wouldn't tell me what was wrong, but he didn't disagree when I said it looked like more than a reaction to the cold." Eliza shook her head. "But I don't know."

"Fuck." John bit his lip. "He had heart surgery a few months ago. I saw the scar—when I stayed over last week. Fuck." He lurched forward, hanging his head and covering his face with his hands. "I should've done something different."

Eliza squeezed his shoulder. "I wish we had. But we can't go back."

John moved so that he could see her face. "I just want him to be okay. I feel like he was just starting to get comfortable and—."

"And you are starting to fall for him?" Eliza surmised.

John looked away. "Am I that obvious?"

"I wouldn't say that." She rubbed his shoulder. "I just know you. You seem happier when he's around and you smile more." She moved a curl off of his face. "And I don't think I've ever seen you break that many speed limits trying to get here."

"I wasn't that bad," he grumbled.

"John, I'm not sure that all four wheels were on the ground when you turned into the parking lot." Eliza sent him a small smile. "But I get it. And for what it's worth, I think Alex is interested in you."

"I don't know," John said miserably. "I can't tell. And I don't really want to push him."

"Just don't rule it out. You've only known him two weeks."

John rubbed his face again. "Yeah, I know. Trust me." He heaved a sigh. "I have almost all my classes with him. So I've gotten to know him more this week. And he's just…he's so smart and he can be so witty when he gets comfortable with you. And you saw him in class today! You can tell he's passionate about things and—"

"And he's cute and really sweet," Eliza added with a smile.

"That too."

"Look, Alex is quiet around all us of still. He talks more one on one, but at lunch he stays quieter. Have you noticed that?"

"He always talks to me at lunch so –oh."

"Exactly." Eliza bumped shoulders with John. "Just have to see what happens."

John nodded again. Lafayette walked back to their seats and threw himself down on the other side of Eliza.

"Well," he stated, "George is on his way. He's going to pick Martha up from work and break the news to her as well."

"Good," John responded.

"So I guess we wait?" Eliza questioned.

"We wait," Laf answered, rubbing is eyes tiredly.

John's phone chirped beside him. He checked the message and fired off replies. "Abuela is coming. She doesn't want us to have to wait alone."

"Thanks," Laf squeaked out.

"Alex will be okay," Eliza softly said.

Laf smiled at her but didn't say anything. The three friends lapsed into a silence as they waited. John's grandmother beat the Washingtons to the hospital. She came into the ER with arms weighed down with bags of food and a drink carrier of coffee.

John stood once he saw her and took the items from her hands, setting them down on the small table by their seats. Once he had finished, she took his face in her hands and kissed his cheek.

"Mi querido," she soothed. "Tell me what happened?" John could feel tears filling his eyes and leaned into her touch. "Shh, it will be okay."

"Thank you for coming, ma'am," Lafayette spoke up.

"Of course." She took one hand and squeezed the boy's hand. "How many times do I have to tell you that you do not need to worry with the ma'am thing?"

Laf smiled for the first time that afternoon. "I am sorry, Abuela."

She returned the smile. "Now, what happened?"

"My foster brother, Alex," Laf started.

"Si, John has mentioned him quite a bit since I returned from North Carolina." She began handing out coffees and pushing food at each of them.

"Our idiot of a gym teacher has been pushing him hard in class. Why, I do not know. But he has. Today was especially bad from what we could tell."

"My sister is in the class with him," Eliza clarified. "The teacher made Alex run for the full period between laps and some rule he inserted into the touch football lesson that stated Alex had to be given the ball by his team every play so that he would have to run in for the touchdown."

"Que cabrón," Abuela cursed.

"Alex just had heart surgery a few months ago," John explained. "I don't know if it is all connected or not. But…" His voice cracked as he trailed off.

John's grandmother squeezed his hand. "It'll be okay, mi querido," She tried to smile at him. "Laf, have you gotten ahold of your parents?"

He nodded. "They're on their way now."

"Good." She gave John's hand a final squeeze. "I recognize some of the staff up front. I'm going to see if I can get any new from them. I'll be back. You kids should try to eat something."

She left Laf, John, and Eliza at that, but none of them touched the food. They silently sipped at the coffee and worried over their friend. Not long after that, the Washingtons arrived at the ER. Martha immediately saw the three of them and rushed to their sides. George joined Abuela at the counter to talk to the staff.

Laf stood as soon as he saw Martha and allowed her to envelope him in a hug. He started mumbling apologies into her shoulder.

"Shh," she soothed. "This is no one's fault. We'll figure it out, sweetheart. Alex will be okay."

George and John's grandmother walked over to them after a few moments. Martha turned to Abuela and hugged her as well. "Thank you for coming down."

"Of course," she replied. "I worked here for years, and know what it's like to have to wait like that."

Martha nodded sadly. "Any news?"

"The doctor is going to come talk to us in just a minute," George informed them. "Abuela helped convince them to allow everyone to hear, not just family. We're going to go back to one of the consultation rooms so that we can have some privacy."

"So no news on Alex yet?" John sighed.

"Soon, son," George promised. He pulled Eliza into his side for a small hug. "Thank you both for waiting with Laf."

"We care about him and Alex both," Eliza said softly. John nodded in agreement.

"Well, then let's go back and wait on the doctor," George sighed.

"Come," Abuela instructed. "They said I could show you back." She rubbed George's back comfortingly. "One of the few perks of being a retired nurse from this place."

"Thank you, again," Martha added.

Abuela took Martha's hand, giving it a squeeze and taking them towards the elevator. She soon showed them to a small room and took a seat between John and Martha. Laf sat between Marth and George as they waited. Eliza took up the end by John, taking his hand in hers once more. They all sat there silently until the doctor arrived.

"Family for Alexander I presume?" he said kindly.

"Yes, sir," George answered. He stood and shook the doctor's hand.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Shippen," the doctor greeted.

"Good evening, William," Abuela responded.

"Well, hello Claudia," Dr. Shippen returned with a smile. "It's been awhile." He continued to greet the others before turning back to the Washingtons. "Now, when Alexander—"

"Alex," Laf interrupted. "He goes by Alex."

"Of course," the doctor continued, not skipping a beat. "When Alex was brought in, he was having difficulty breathing and was unconscious. On top of that, he was running a high fever and experiencing some swelling in his limbs. We started him on oxygen and he regained consciousness while still down in the ER."

"So what's causing these symptoms?" George spoke, his voice shaking a little.

The doctor sighed. "We got him to talk a little. He said some of the symptoms had been going on for awhile. Since before he moved in with you."

"He never said anything," Martha gasped.

Dr. Shippen smiled sadly at her. "He explained that. He was very adamant that it was not your fault. But he did inform us that his previous foster home neglected his medication regimen. You see, after surgery such as the one Alex underwent, it is recommended that patients remain on antibiotics for an extended period of time. From what Alex said, once his medication from the hospital was finished, his foster parents never filled his prescriptions."

"So he has an infection?" John asked. His grandmother squeezed his hand harder as he spoke.

"Yes, but I'm afraid it is not a simple infection," Dr. Shippen continued. "Alex has what is called endocarditis. It's an infection around the inner lining of the heart. It is more common with individuals with heart defects."

"So it is a byproduct of his last surgery?" Martha asked.

"It could be but it is common to have bacteria enter through the mouth into the blood stream. Through cuts or sores in the mouth."

George cursed. "He had cuts in his gums when he first got to the house last week. They looked like they had been there awhile. He never said what happened, but it seemed as if his last foster home is to blame for more than just missing medication."

"Regardless," Dr. Shippen went on sympathetically, "Alex is a pretty sick kid right now. We've started him on antibiotics to help fight the infection and have a nasal cannula set up to help supplement oxygen for now. We will be doing blood tests throughout the evening and night to see how the infection responds. We did an echo of his heart before settling him in his room as well. It revealed our primary concern at this point." The doctor sat on the edge of the nearby table. "The infection appears to have caused an abscess near his heart. Pus collection of that nature does not always respond solely to antibiotics."

"What are the options then?" George couldn't help but fear what his answer would be.

"Surgery, unfortunately, is likely in Alex's future. We would go in and drain the pus and repair any damage to the heart."

"He just had heart surgery a few months ago," Martha hiccupped. "Will it…how bad would it be to have another that soon?"

"It is not ideal," Dr. Shippen replied. "However, we would do our best to make this as minimally invasive as possible. He'll have a decent recovery time regardless, but our goal would be to make this as easy as possible on him at this point."

George nodded. "So what's the plan?"

"We're going to keep him on antibiotics for the night and monitor his condition closely. He's been placed in pediatric intensive care so that we can watch him. I'm going to go ahead and schedule a surgery for tomorrow afternoon. If his condition improves with antibiotics alone and tomorrow's echo shows no damage to any heart valves, then I can always cancel it. But I fear that surgery will be needed."

"Can we see him?" Lafayette asked softly.

"You may," the doctor said. "We've lifted some of the rules for you to be able to stay in the room. You can thank Claudia I am assuming for some of that." She smiled mischievously. "I swear you're the only nurse I ever worked with who could convince the others to break the rules for patients like that." He laughed a little. "But, yes, you can see him and stay for awhile but I'm afraid only one or two may stay the night with him if desired. Though, I will warn, we will be doing those blood tests all night. So he may be woken frequently, as will others in the room I would imagine."

"I want to stay," Martha quickly replied. "I don't care about sleep."

"So we can see him?" John asked hopefully.

The doctor nodded to him before addressing everyone again. "I'll have a nurse come show you to the room in a few moments."

"John, are you sure—" Claudia started to speak.

"I need to see Alex," John interrupted.

"He can stay with Laf tonight," George added. "It would like him to not be alone while we are here."

Laf looked frustrated at his words. "But—"

"You may return in the morning," George explained. "But you should let John take you home later. You can both get something to eat and stay at the house."

"That's probably for the best," John's grandmother relented. She turned to Eliza. "Sweetie, let me take you home. I need to get back to John's siblings before it gets later. I can drop you off on my way."

Eliza looked like she wanted to argue, but consented to Abuela. "Give Alex a hug for me. I'll come by after school tomorrow," Eliza said.

Claudia and Eliza gave hugs to the others and left them just as a nurse returned to the room. "Alexander's family I presume?" he asked.

"Yes. George Washington." He shook the nurse's hand. "This is my wife Martha, our son Lafayette and the boys' friend John."

"Okay, I'm Chris and I'll be showing you to Alex's room. He was awake when I left a few moments ago and asking for you guys, especially you boys." Laf and John perked up at that. "Though, I should warn you all, he seems to believe that everyone is going to be mad at him. He kept repeating that earlier. He's calmed down a lot since then, but…"

"Of course," Martha sighed. "We're not angry with him. Just worried. Can we please see him?"

The nurse nodded and showed them out of the room and down the hall to the pediatric unit. They passed the main unit and headed towards the separate intensive care area.

"Now, we usually only allow two in at a time, but Alex has been given a private room and some accommodations have been made." The nurse pushed them towards a room across from the nurses' station. "Here we are. I should warn that he is on oxygen right now. He's attached to heart monitors and will have IVs as well. So expect lots of wires but don't be too alarmed. He was awake and fairly alert when I was in there earlier."

They thanked the nurse one last time and slowly made their way into the room. Alex's bed was the only one there, as the nurse had promised, and the boy was awake, just as they were told. But despite the warnings, nothing could have prepared them for the sight of him.

Alex was pale, far paler than he should ever be, with red spots around his cheeks. His forehead looked sweaty and strands of his hair stuck to it in places. His eyes were bloodshot and red around the edges; large bags snaked their way underneath. Wires looped and hung in every direction around him. Thick blankets covered some, and all but his upper body. He shook despite the extra warmth they no doubt provided.

All in all, Alex looked miserable. More than that, he barely looked alive.

Laf couldn't help but gasp and mutter a friend curse under his breath at the sight before them. Alex stirred at his friend's voice and blinked at them.

"Alex," Laf sighed. He broke out of the reverie they had all fallen under and walked to the bed, the first of the group to do so. He stopped a foot and stared at the occupant with a mix of anxiety and concern.

"Je vais bien," Alex croaked out.

Laf shook his head, his eyes filing with tears. "Think this is far from okay, mon ami." He took Alex's hand and gave it a squeeze. "How do you really feel?"

Alex sighed and slumped further down in the bed. "I could be better," he mumbled.

"Are you in pain?" Martha asked, breaking away from George and stepping up beside Laf.

Alex shrugged. "I'm fine."

"Bullshit," John stated. "We already talked to the doctors, Alex." John walked around to Alex's other side. His hand twitched towards Alex's nervously before finally taking it in his own. He was mindful of the wires and tubes.

"He's right, mon ami," Laf sighed. "Please be honest with us."

Alex swallowed thickly. George stepped up next to Martha, snaking an arm around her waist and giving Alex a look. Alex closed his eyes and took a breath. "Pain c-could be w-worse. Chest is s-sore. But b-better than this afternoon."

"What else?" Martha prodded gently.

Alex bit his lip. "Breathing kind of sucks, but this helps." He tapped on tubes under his nose. "I'm tired, but that's nothing new." The second half was barely above a whisper. John heard him loud and clear; he squeezed his hand harder.

"Alex," George spoke. "Why didn't you tell us? We would have done something."

Alex looked away and spoke softer than before. "No one else ever did."

"Alex—"

"No," he interrupted. "That's not completely true. Some did. But…"

"The Kings made it worse," George ventured a guess. He was rewarded with a small nod in return. "And Seabury I'm assuming."

Alex scoffed at the mention of his Florida caseworker. It turned into a painful sounding cough that left him gasping a little for air.

"Easy," John soothed. The boy took up a seat on the edge of the bed and helped Alex lean forward to relieve pressure in his chest. "That's it. You're okay." He hugged the other boy close and Alex leaned against him, letting him take his weight.

"I'm sorry, Alex," George quickly apologized. "I don't want to get you worked up, but I do intend to make a call to CPS."

Alex gave a panicked look to George at the words. "What?"

"Alex—"

"C-can you wait until after I get out to call him?" Alex asked.

"Sweetheart?" Martha gently spoke from the side of the bed, rubbing his arm.

"I'm so sorry," Alex continued. "I know this is not what you expected and that I'm costing you money and time and everything else. I'm sorry."

"Alex—"

"But recovering from surgery in group homes is hell. I don't…I can't do that again. Please."

"Hey, breathe," John intervened. "Take a breath."

"Listen to John," George said softly. He squeezed Alex's ankle. "And listen to me, son. I want to call to report the Kings for neglect at the very least, though I'm going to bet there is more to it than that if I pressed. I also want to report Seabury for his own negligence. I'm not sending you back, or doing whatever else you are worried about. All those things you just listed, I'm not worried about that. I'm just worried about you right now."

"Same goes for me," Martha stated firmly.

"Moi aussi," Laf added.

"You're not going anywhere," John said adamantly.

"Not your choice," Alex mumbled closing his eyes tightly to avoid tears.

A hand lifted Alex's chin up until he relented and reopened his eyes. George stared kindly back at him. "It is my choice though. And I promise, nothing you do is going to make us send you back. You're stuck with us." He moved his hand so that it cupped Alex's cheek. "We'd like to help you through this. We don't plan to send you to a group home at all, let alone to recover from surgery."

"He's right," Martha chimed in. "You're with us for the long haul if I have any say in it." She leaned down and gave Alex a kiss on his heated forehead.

"We all know I have the most say," Laf teased. "And I say you are well and truly stuck with me, mon ami."

John nudged him gently. "Yeah, not going anywhere."

"Well, you two are going to have to head home soon," Martha glumly interrupted. "It's getting late and you both have had a hard day."

"But—" both Laf and John tried to argue.

"You will both want to be here early in the morning," George reasoned. "And need to sleep some and eat."

"George's right," Alex said sadly. "You shouldn't miss meals and sleep over me."

"You're worth it," John said quietly.

"Please," Alex pleaded with them.

"Fine," Laf sighed. "We will be back before your surgery though. Je promets."

John stood from his place on the bed, and Laf leaned in to hug Alex. John followed with a hug of his own. At the last moment, he placed a chaste kiss to the side of Alex's head. The boy looked up in surprise, but John just smiled. It was a talk for another day.

"Text us when you get home, guys," George asked. "And if you order food, just ask them to put it on my tab this time. Don't worry about it."

Martha took Laf's place once the boys left, earning a confused look from Alex. "What is it dear?"

"N-not to sound rude, but I thought you would have to leave as well. It's getting late, like you said."

"It is, but we are not leaving," George informed, slipping the knot of his tie down and discarding his coat. He took the chair by the bed. "We're going to stay, Alex. We want to."

"Oh," Alex replied, still sounding surprised.

"Unless you would rather we leave then—"

"Please stay," he softly interrupted. "I…" He bit his lip. "Last time I was by myself for all of this."

Martha shifted on the bed so that she could put her arm around his shoulders. "You won't be this time."

The following morning, Martha's words continued to prove true for Alex. The Washingtons remained. They barely left his side that night. They stayed as the fever persisted, as the coughing worsened, and the anxiety rose as through the countless blood draws.

And they were there as he was wheeled away for surgery.

* * *

A/N: John's grandmother is based partly on Abuela Claudia from In the Heights, as well as a professor of mine showed up at the ER with bags of food in her arms when I had to take one of my classmates once. Dr. Shippen's name is based off Washington's second Director General of Hospitals of the Continental Army.

Also, I would like to take a moment to thank everyone for following this story and taking the time to give feedback. It's been amazing to see all of it in the past few weeks and has really encouraged me to get back into writing. Thanks to you all, I have a bit of a list of plots in my head for some other Hamilton stories.


	7. Chapter 7

This time was different in the ways that matter. Consciousness still hurt, he couldn't deny that. His eyes felt like they were weighted down while his chest felt like a weight was pressing down on it. He hurt. He was exhausted. He felt sick. He felt miserable.

But this time, Alex was not alone when he woke in recovery.

There was a hand rubbing his arm soothingly. It couldn't take away the pain in his chest or the buzzing in his head, but it was nice nonetheless.

"Alex? Can you hear me, sweetheart?"

The hand moved from his arm to his head, sweeping his long hair out of his face and smoothing it back.

"You're okay, Alex. It's all alright, baby. You're going to be fine."

Alex swallowed thickly and leaned into the touch, finally gathering the strength to open his eyes. The lights were thankfully dimmed around him, but they still hurt. Granted, everything hurt to varying extents.

"Hello there," the voice said gently.

Alex gathered the energy to turn a little, finally seeing Martha at his bedside. "Mmm," he groaned in an attempted to say her name.

"Easy there," she instructed. "You just had a tube pulled out of your throat. Here." She slid a few ice cubes into his mouth. "Take it slow, baby. It's okay."

Alex closed his eyes as he let the ice sooth his sore throat. "Th-thanks," he said after a few minutes.

"Of course." Martha went back to rubbing his arm.

"You st-stayed." His eyes were wide as he spoke and his body shivered.

Martha stood to pull the blanket tighter around him as he shivered then kissed his forehead. "Not getting rid of me any time soon, sweetheart. Promise you that."

Alex blinked and raised a hand to rub at his face. The movement jarred his chest, earning a groan in the process. He moved his hand and carefully felt around the bandages. Martha lifted his hand away from them and ran hers through his hair once more.

"Careful there. It's okay."

"Scar?" Alex inquired shakily.

She rubbed her thumb in circles against the back of his hand. "You'll have a new one. I'm so sorry. They were able to do a minimally invasive procedure this time, baby. They didn't reopen your last incision. They couldn't. Too much scar tissue and there wasn't the need for that big of an incision. You have a smaller one here." She pointed to the right side of her chest. "They went through the muscle there. That's why it hurts to move your arm like that."

Alex just nodded and looked down at his chest. Now that his eyes were focusing more, he could see the edges of the bandages under the gown. He also noticed a tube sticking out from his chest. His fingers traced the edges of it for a moment before Martha pulled them away.

"You probably don't want to touch that," she chided softly. "They drained the abscess but they want to make sure that the rest of the fluid build up drains out from surgery. They said that would need to stay in for the next 24 hours at least."

Alex nodded again and stopped trying to touch the various wires and bandages. His eyes started to droop shut but he fought to keep them open.

"Shh, go back to sleep, Alex. It's okay. I'm here. George, Laf, and John will be here when you wake up too. It's okay."

Alex must have listened to Martha, because the next thing he knew, he was waking up in his PICU room. He shuffled a little in bed. The motion tugged at his tubes and wires, causing him to moan a little. Someone was at his side, carding a hand through his hair and talking softly. He finally opened his eyes.

"Yo, look who decided to join us," John whispered with a big smile.

Alex gave a watery smile in return. "Hey."

"Hey yourself." John carefully slid in next to him on the bed.

Alex leaned his head against John's arm and chanced a glance around the room. He could see George and Martha asleep on the small couch across the room. Laf was in the bedside chair, snoring softly himself. There were cards and balloons on the table next to him. The window above him showed a darkened sky.

"What time is it?" Alex croaked.

"Going on eight. You've been out for awhile." John pointed at the others in the room. "They all tried to stay awake but they dropped off about an hour ago. Don't think anyone really slept much last night."

"Mmm…sorry."

"None of that," John sighed. "How do you feel?"

"Sore," Alex said, clearing his throat a little and trying to shift. "Chest hurts."

"Want me to get someone? I—"

"Stay," Alex whispered. "Please."

John nodded. "Do you need me to move? Am I hurting you?"

"No. Feels nice." Alex bit his lip. "Unless you don't want to stay or I'm hurting you."

In response, John moved his arm so that Alex could lay against his chest more comfortable.

"Thank you," Alex sighed, relaxing into John more.

"Of course."

"And th-thank you for being h-here." Alex chanced a look at John's face.

"Wouldn't be anywhere else. Neither would they. Told you, not getting rid of us." John pushed hair out of Alex's face.

"Still. Feels nice."

John smiled at him. "Good. You deserve that."

Before Alex could argue, a nurse walked into the room with needles and vials in her hand. When she realized he was awake, she gave him a smile and warm greeting. "Well hello, Alex. Good to see you awake…and alert?"

"I think so," Alex replied. "As much as I can be."

The nurse laughed a little at his words. "I can take that. Think that's the best I've gotten all day."

Alex huffed out a small laugh as well. "I'm sorry for you then."

He started to shift away from John for her, but she held up her hands. "You're fine where you are, dear. You can stay with your boy there." Alex and John both blushed at her words. " I'm going to just check your incision, your tube, and get some blood from you."

"Hmm…that all?" Alex asked, blinking dazedly at her for a moment.

"What can I say," she teased. "This is what happens when you're the best I've gotten all day."

"Yay for me," Alex sighed, earning a laugh from John as well.

"Alright. Let me check you over some." The nurse went about checking the various tubes and wires. "Looks like there hasn't been as much fluid output from the chest tube in the last hour."

"Is that good?" John asked.

"Very," she replied, covering the tubes back with blankets so that Alex wasn't cold. "And the incision is still looking good, but I want to change out the bandages. Got a little bit of bleeding, but nothing to worry about. It's normal to have a little leakage."

Alex nodded and let her get back to work. He glanced at the wound. Another scar.

"It's not bad," John stated softly. "It won't be bad."

"Listen to your boy," the nurse added.

Neither John nor Alex corrected her.

"Oiu," Lafayette groggily spoke. "You should listen, Alex." He winked at Alex and glanced at John.

Alex sent his foster brother a look. "And you should go back to sleep."

"I believe that is my line as well," Laf retorted.

"Actually, I think I can say that to both of you," George interjected around a yawn. Martha sat up as he moved, rubbing her eyes.

"Good evening, guys," the nurse called out. "I'm almost done here, then you can have your boy to yourself for a little bit. Just don't tire him out too much." The last part was aimed largely at John as she sent him a knowing look, grabbing the needle once more. "Alright, hon, I just have to take some blood from you. I know you are probably sick of us vampires bleeding your dry, but this is the best way to monitor your infection right now."

Alex just nodded and let the nurse pull his arm out to draw the sample. John squeezed his other hand and let him lean onto him through it all.

"How's he doing?" George asked while the nurse worked.

"Well, Alex still has a long way to go, but it's better than last night. His fever came down a little, though it's still higher than we'd like. But his oxygen saturation has improved. You will likely still have some coughing every now and then though. I will warn you of that, and it will hurt. But we're trying to monitor and have given meds to help suppress that some." She finished drawing blood and fixed cotton and tape where the needle was. "He's awake though, and more alert than I expected." She winked at Alex, earning a grin in response. "He's still groggy and will probably end up sleeping a lot more whether he wants to or not."

"I kind of want to at this point," he sighed.

Martha smiled sadly at him. "Look at us talking like you aren't here. Sorry about that, sweetie. How're you feeling, Alex?"

Alex rubbed at his eyes a little. "Okay. Sore. Tired. C-cold. Still sick, but could be worse."

"Can you rate your pain for me?" the nurse asked. "One being no pain at all. Ten being the worst pain you could fathom."

"Don't downplay it either," Laf warned.

Alex sighed. "About a seven."

The nurse nodded and punched some buttons on his IV drip. "Okay, that should help a little then. I'll be back in a few hours to check over things and to do another blood draw. Can I get you anything else?"

Alex opened his mouth to say no but she gave him a look as if she knew he would say that just to appease her.

"Water?" he asked softly.

"Water is definitely a good request," she replied. "How about some food with that?"

Alex felt his stomach turn at the mention of food. "I don't know…"

"How about this," the nurse continued. "I will definitely get you water and show your family where to get it at the nurses' station for you. We'll try that first and give you some time to see how it feels. But I would like to try some food. Nothing major. Not even solid food. Maybe some broth? It will help warm you some. What do you say?"

"Fine," Alex sighed tiredly. "I'll try."

"Thank you," the nurse replied. "Martha? If you'd like to follow me I'll show you where you can go to get drinks for Alex."

Martha left the boys alone to get things from the nurse. George climbed off the couch and walked over to the bed. He squeezed Alex's ankle as he stepped up. "We're very proud of you."

Alex looked up at him with confusion clear in his eyes.

"Alex, I've seen grown men not be able to handle something like this as well as you have. You've been very brave."

Alex didn't know what to say to George, and was very relieved when Martha returned with a water mug and straw for him. Alex tried to take the mug on his own, but moving his arms clearly pulled on sore muscles and incisions. John motioned for her to hand it to him and helped Alex sip from it instead.

"Thank you," Alex said, his cheeks red with embarrassment. "Sorry."

"Baby, you have nothing to be sorry for," Martha soothed. She pulled blankets up higher on his chest, careful of his bandages. "You're just fine, Alex."

Alex gave her a watery smile and let John help him more. It wasn't long after that that the nurse returned with the broth for him. His appetite was nearly nonexistent, but he sipped at the warm liquid nonetheless. It tired him more than he was willing to admit to simply sit up and sip at the mug, even with John's help. He barely finished half of it before he was falling asleep against John's side.

"Get some rest, Alex."

He felt a kiss to his forehead before everything else was lost to sleep once again.

"Your hair looks like a birds nest."

Alex blinked to clear his vision, taking in the three Schuyler girls sprawled across his room. He hadn't meant to fall asleep, but the moment he'd been moved to his new room, he had crashed once again. He'd been in the hospital for a few days now, and was finally out of PICU. His doctor had approved the move to a private room in the pediatric unit just that morning.

"Pegs," Angie chastised. "Leave Alex alone. He just woke up and you're already picking on him."

Eliza rolled her eyes at her sisters and turned her attention to Alex. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay," Alex replied around a groan, sitting up a little more so that he could talk to the girls. "My chest hurts some, but it could be a lot worse. Same with coughing." A strand of hair fell in his face. He tried to blow it away but it was pointless. "Still feel weaker and sorer than I would like. Which is why my hair looks like this."

"Oh," Peggy sighed, more subdued.

Alex lifted his right arm up a little ways off the bed. "Whenever I move my arm higher than this, it pulls on my stitches. I can't really get my hair pulled back with just one hand. Though, the nurses did help me yesterday in PICU with dry shampoo, which was kind of amazing and pathetic all at once." He sent the girls a small smile.

Peggy bit her lip and silently crawled onto the bed by Alex. She started carding her fingers through his hair, gently untangling knots as she went.

Alex almost melted into her touch. It felt good, but he didn't quite understand what she was doing. "What—"

"I'm fixing your hair," Peggy stated matter of factly. She turned to her sisters. "Give me two hair ties out of your bags. Don't care which."

Eliza dug in her bag and pulled them out for Peggy.

"Why two?" Alex asked.

"Angie, help me get Alex up a little. He can lean against me but need his head most off the pillow," Peggy instructed, ignoring Alex's question.

With Angelica supporting him, Alex was able to sit upright more and leaned against Peggy as she worked on his hair. She ran her hand through it to get the last of the knots out and then started to pull it up into two pigtails. Alex started to protest when he realized what she was doing, but she shushed him every time he opened his mouth.

Eliza squeezed his hand. "I promise we came here to bring you get well gifts; not sic Peggy on your hair."

"I would use the words unruly mane to describe this," Peggy huffed as she tugged on his hair again.

Alex tried to glare at her but she pushed his head back towards her sisters. "You didn't have to do anything. I—"

"Nope," Angie interrupted. "You don't get to argue this." She reached down into her backpack and pulled out a good-sized gift bag. "It's from all of us, and our mom."

"Guys—"

"Alex," Eliza sighed softly. "Just take the gift. It's nothing major. Just some things to make you feel a little better while you're stuck in here."

Alex smiled at her and took the bag from Angie. He pulled out a thick blanket first. He could see words written all over it and turned it so he could read it better.

"You said you liked that classics," Angie said. "That has quotes from all the classics on it."

"Plus its freaking cold in hospitals," Peggy huffed.

Alex laughed a little. "You're not wrong there. Thank you. This is perfect."

Eliza nudged the bag. "There's more in there."

Alex pulled out the rest, which turned out to be new books.

Eliza pointed to one. "The Martian is my favorite newer book out there right now. And I thought the writer in you might enjoy Wonderboys."

"And I really just want someone else to read American Gods so that I can talk to them about it," Angie sighed, tapping one of the novels.

"Thank you," he stated, flipping through the pages of the book.

Peggy suddenly gave him a kiss to the cheek. "All done with your hair. Pigtails. That way you can lay back and still be comfortable. Can't do that with ponytails."

Alex chuckled at that. "Thanks for thinking of that."

Angie and Eliza followed their sister, giving Alex kisses to his forehead and careful hugs.

"We're really glad you're okay," Eliza admitted softly.

"Next time," Angelica warned, "you open your mouth when something doesn't feel right. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am," Alex promised, still smiling.

"Good." Angelica pushed a loose hair back into his pigtail. "Glad that's settled."

"What's settled?" an amused voice called from the doorway.

"Hey Mr. W," Angelica greeted as the man walked into the room. "Just talking to Alex about how he's feeling."

"Ah," George sighed as he sat in the open chair across the room. "And how are you feeling today, Alex?"

"Okay, sir."

George sent him a small smile. "Has the nurses come by since they moved you?"

"Not sure," Alex replied. "I was asleep until the sisters got here."

George nodded. "Good. I just wanted to check. They mentioned that they wanted to get you up and walking earlier."

"Oh," Alex exhaled anxiously.

"Hey, can't be lazy forever," Peggy teased, nudging him a little. "Besides, you have to show off that hair since I fixed it. No one's going to see it if you stay in here all day."

Alex gave a shaky laugh in return.

"She's got a point, kid," Angelica joked, flipping one of his pigtails.

Eliza stood from her place at the end of the bed. "We should go so you can get some rest and check in with the nurses, Alex."

"Okay," Alex sighed. The sisters each leaned for a small kiss and hug before filing out. He was left with George alone for the first time since he was in the hospital.

"Martha's resting at home for now, but will come later to see you and spend the night I believe," George explained.

"She deserves to rest."

"So do you, Alex." George stood from his chair and walked over to the bed. "Do you mind if I touch your forehead?" Alex nodded assent. "Thank you." George placed the back of his hand against Alex's still sweaty forehead. "Can't quite shake the fever, huh?"

"No." Alex shrunk back into his pillows. "I'm sorry."

George let his hand slide up to Alex's head. "Son, you have nothing to be sorry for. You can't help that you have a fever. Don't think you chose to have all this happen."

Alex just nodded.

"Son—"

Before George could continue the talk, a nurse knocked on the doorframe and entered the room.

"Hello, gentlemen," the nurse said as he made his way over to Alex. "I'm Dave, and you fellas are stuck with me for the afternoon. How are you feeling this afternoon, kid?"

"Okay," Alex replied. George gave him a look from across the room as the nurse went about checking over him. "Well, sore," he relented. "Better than before but still sore and achy."

Dave nodded. "That's pretty understandable." He placed an electronic thermometer in Alex's ear and waited until it beeped a few moments later. "Fever's still hanging on but it's coming down. You're at 100° Fahrenheit right now, but from what I saw of your chart that's quite an improvement." He gently tugged at the front of Alex's gown. "I'm going to quickly check your incision now." He pulled back the bandaged and touched around the area, earning a small moan from Alex. "Sorry, Alex."

"How's it look?" George asked, coming over to the other side of Alex's bed.

"It's good. It looks like it's healing right. Same with the place where they moved the chest tube. Though, I would imagine that one is still pretty tender since they just did that this morning."

"Yeah," Alex mumbled around a shaky breath. He startled a little as George placed a hand on his shoulder, but Alex soon found himself leaning into the touch without thinking. George just squeezed his shoulder in response.

"Well," Dave continued, "I know you probably would love to stay in bed, and I know you probably still don't feel great, but I'd like to get you up. You'll keep you IVs and your catheter in. Just want you on your feet for a bit."

Alex bit his lip and pushed himself up in bed a little. "Okay." He threw the blankets down some and started to twist so that he could get out of bed. The motion pulled on the small incision from his chest tube, forcing him to lie back on the bed. George was quick to guide him back while the nurse checked to make sure he hadn't pulled stitches.

"Okay, I did not mean you had to do that all on your own, kid," Dave stated. "Why don't you let us help you? Let us do the heavy lifting and just focus on getting your balance and moving your feet. Let me get you up and let your old man here help you walk a little. Deal?"

Alex was too surprised by the offers of help to correct Dave.

They wanted to help?

George was already helping Dave untangle wires and ensure that nothing would be pulled or tugged on once he was vertical.

Last time, Alex could barely get the nurses to come when he pressed the help button. Last time he had been told to walk the halls by himself, the nurses and doctors too busy with too many others affected by the hurricane. Last time he had no one…

Dave and George both worked to get Alex upright, holding his shoulders as he struggled to stand and provided support when his balance wobbled. It took some time and a lot of patience before Alex seemed steadier on his feet.

"There we go," Dave said as Alex took a few tentative steps. "You're good. Looking good kid."

"Dave's right, Alex," George praised.

Dave looked up at George before speaking. "Think you can help him walk back and forth from the nurses' station?"

"Of course," George promised. "Think we can handle that. What do you think Alex?"

Alex sighed. "Do I have a choice?"

George laughed a little but shook his head no. "Afraid not son. Come on."

"Yeah," Dave agreed. "The sooner we do this, the sooner I can give you some good pain meds and let you sleep."

Alex nodded his head and relented. George guided him out of the hospital room and they slowly made their way down the hall. Alex pushed his IV pole along as he walked. Alex's feet mostly shuffled along beside George at first. But he when he stumbled, George was quick to hold him back up and help him regain his balance. It was obvious the stumble had jerked on sore muscles and the chest tube's fresh incision from the way Alex grunted in pain and winced as George held him upright.

"Are you okay? Should I get the nurse or—"

"I'm okay, George," Alex assured.

"Alex," George continued.

"Okay, that hurt but I'm fine, George." Alex took a tentative step forward. "They'll just make me try again later if I can't do this now."

"I know." George put his arm around Alex's shoulders and took over pushing the IV pole for him. "Let me take this and you just focus on your steps."

"You don't have to. I can manage. I've done it before."

George's gave him a confused look but continued to push the pole for him. "I've got it. I don't mind, Alex. It's why I'm here. I'm here to help in whatever way I can. I can take care of this for you."

This time it was Alex who gave the confused look.

No one else has tried to take care of things before.

Alex nodded and let George push it. They made it to the station where a few of Alex's nurses all cheered and encouraged him. Everyone could tell that he was growing more tired and sore with each step. Once they were halfway back to his room, George started to take on a little more of Alex's weight for him. Alex let him help, leaning into the touch and allowing the extra help the rest of the way.

"Thank you," Alex mumbled as George helped him back into his bed and arranged the blankets over him once more. "You didn't have to do all that. Thank you." The nurse followed in behind them so that all the monitors could be reattached and everything plugged back into the outlets. George watched, looking as if he wanted to ask Alex a hundred questions.

"Alright, kid," Dave stated once everything was set up. "Can you rate the pain for me right now?"

"Um, maybe a six?"

Dave nodded and administered some extra medication. "This will probably make you feel groggy for right now, but it'll help."

"Thank you," Alex sighed as the warm liquid flooded his body.

Dave left, telling George to call if either needed anything. George returned to Alex's bedside and made sure that his blankets and pillows were in order.

"What's all this?" he asked, pointing to the gift bag the Schuyler's had left.

"The girls," Alex replied around a yawn. "Get well gift."

George smiled as he looked through the books and the blanket. "That was very nice of them. They seem like good friends."

"Yeah." He blinked a little, as if he was almost falling asleep. "It's weird."

"What's weird, Alex?" George sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Having friends." He rubbed at his eyes, blinking a little. His meds were starting to take effect. He yawned again. "Never had them before."

"Never had friends?" George looked at the boy with a mix of worry and bewilderment.

Alex shook his head. "No one's been there. Just mom." He closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed at them again. "Then she wasn't. Then no one. No one was there last time."

"Alex, what do you mean?"

"Last surgery. Just me." Alex yawned and shifted down on the bed. "No one was there."

"Alex, I don't understand."

Unfortunately for George, Alex was already asleep. He would likely not remember much of the conversation, and if he did he wouldn't be thrilled. But George knew they would have to talk about this again. Between the 'you didn't have to do all that' and the 'no one was there' comments, George couldn't let it go.

"Oh Alex," George sighed. He ran his hand through the boy's hair. "No one should go through this alone." He tugged out the pigtails that Peggy had given him, letting the hair fan out on the pillows. "You won't have to ever again. I promise."


	8. Chapter 8

He knew something was wrong. He could tell by the way George looked at him as he came into the room that afternoon. He felt the air of pity and concern that followed him. He saw the questions in the way George looked at him as he took his seat. It felt crushing. Worst of all, Alex didn't know what had happened. He didn't know what he had done.

"Afternoon, Alex," George greeted. His voice sounded tense, almost anxious. He shifted in his chair across from the bed. His hands teased a loose thread on the knee of his pants.

"Afternoon, sir," Alex replied on reflex, shrinking back into the pillows on his bed. George stood from his chair and moved to touch Alex's forehead, earning a hard flinch from the boy that left him gasping in pain as it jarred his sore muscles and incisions.

George sighed deeply. "I'm so sorry." He eased himself onto the edge of the bed and gently squeezed Alex's shoulders. "I'm scaring you."

Alex bit his lip and nodded.

"I am very sorry, Alex."

"What did I do?" Alex blurted out. He closed his eyes tightly as soon as the words were out, regretting their frankness.

George looked at Alex and smiled sadly. "Nothing. I'm so sorry for making you feel like you had." George rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. "I'm being weird, aren't I?"

Alex nodded a little but didn't really reply.

"Alex, you're not in trouble. Nor have you done anything wrong." He squeezed Alex's shoulder. "Last night, you said some things that worried me and I think I've focused too much on trying to figure out how to bring it up without scaring you that I've scared you with my anxiety."

Alex's mouth twitched into a small smile as George finished the sentence. It didn't last for long though. "Wh-what did I say? I don't remember much after getting back to the room."

"You thanked me for helping you," George explained. "And then told me that others hadn't last time. That you didn't have anyone helping you in the hospital."

"Oh," Alex sighed. He relaxed into the pillows a little. "That's all?"

"Well, yes," George replied, confusion obvious in his voice. "But I don't think it's something that we should take lightly. I—"

"It's really not a big deal," Alex continued.

"Alex, it is a big deal."

Alex shook his head again. "I took care of myself. It was fine."

"You ended up back in the hospital because people didn't help you, son."

Alex bit his lip and inhaled sharply through his nose. "I'm not anyone's son anymore. Which is why I took care of things myself. I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

George sighed. "I'm sorry, but nothing about that sounds fine. It sounds like people severely neglected your needs and—"

"There wasn't anybody to neglect my needs."

"There were nurses and doctors and—"

"All of which were busy with victims of the hurricane," Alex quickly interrupted. "I didn't matter as much."

"You can't believe that."

Alex closed his eyes. He hadn't meant to say that out loud. "George please."

George must have moved while Alex's eyes were closed because before he knew what was happening, George was wrapping his arms around him and pulling him into his side. "You matter and no one should treat you like you don't."

Alex didn't reply but he also didn't push George away from the hug.

"Alex?" George prodded after a few minutes of silence.

"Can you please drop this?"

"This is important," George continued.

"It isn't," Alex responded.

"Alex—"

"Are we interrupting?" a voice called from the doorway.

George and Alex looked up to see John and his grandmother. Abuela Claudia had containers in her arms and walked in with an ease about her. John, on the other hand, seemed tense, obviously having heard pieces of George and Alex's talk.

Alex waved at them nervously while George spoke. "Hey, yeah, come in. Sorry we just…"

"John, why don't you take George downstairs for a bite to eat," Claudia instructed.

"But we brought—"

Claudia gave him a look. "John, please."

John just nodded and looked at George.

"Claudia, I—"

"Nope," she argued. "I think it would do you some good. Besides, John wanted to go the to the gift shop. You can take him there after you get some food." She set the container in her hands onto Alex's bedside table. "Go on you two. I won't take no for an answer."

George looked between Alex and Claudia for a moment before relenting. "Just for fifteen minutes," George countered.

"Make it thirty," Claudia sighed, continuing to unpack her containers.

George sighed and allowed John to pull him towards the door.

"I'll be back in a bit," John said softly to Alex, giving him an encouraging smile.

"We'll be fine," Claudia assured George as she gave him another look.

"I have my phone if you need anything," George said to Claudia and Alex before allowing John to lead him out of the room.

Claudia turned back to her food containers and took off the lid from one of the bowls, sending a delicious aroma around the room.

"I'm not really hungry," Alex muttered.

Claudia continued to move containers and dig into her bag, pulling out utensils and napkins. "I'm sure, but that doesn't mean you don't need to eat."

"But—"

"Alex, cariño, I was a nurse in this very hospital long before you were even born. No argument is going to sway me." She smiled at him. "I know that you are underweight and I'm worried about it putting more of a strain on your heart and body as you recover." She stepped away from the food to pull over the rolling table. She adjusted it so that it was at chest level for Alex, making it easier to reach and eat. "Besides, you wouldn't want all my work to go to waste now would you?"

Alex sighed in defeat and carefully pushed himself into a sitting position against his pillows. Claudia helped to adjust the level of the bed for him as well. She then set a bowl in front of him of steaming stew.

Alex couldn't help but smile a little at the food. "Asopao de pollo?"

"Sí," Claudia laughed. She took a bowl for herself and sat in the nearby chair. "I thought you might enjoy this more than the chicken noodle soup served from the cafeteria."

Alex made a face at the mention of the hospital food. He then cautiously took a spoon full of Claudia's asopao and brought it to his mouth. He let out a small moan as the food touched his tongue and his mouth was lit up with the delicious taste.

Claudia laughed from her chair. "I take it you like it?"

Alex blushed. "Yeah. Um, haven't had it since I was a kid."

"What part of Puerto Rico did you grow up on?" Claudia asked, much to Alex's shock. She smiled kindly at him. "John mentioned that you were born there."

Alex bit his lip. "La Perla. My mom and I lived there. She traveled to the city for work."

"I grew up on the other side of the city wall," Claudia continued. "In San Juan."

Alex took tentative bites of the stew. "I spent a lot of time there with my mom. She didn't like leaving me alone in La Perla."

"Sounds like she cared for you a great deal," Claudia hedged, standing and grabbing some bread for Alex. "Here. Will go well together."

"She did. Thank you."

Claudia ran her fingers through the loose hair near Alex's face. "My mamá made this very recipe for me whenever I was ill. I can never quite get it exactly like hers, but it always feels good to try. Gives me a piece of her." Alex stared down at the food, not wanting to meet Claudia's eyes. "Alex, accepting help from someone else, someone who isn't your mother, doesn't hurt the memory of her."

"I know that," he said softly.

"But you aren't used to it."

He nodded. He pulled off a few pieces of bread to avoid speaking further.

"And that's why you are upset at George?"

He swallowed thickly. "No." He ran a hand tiredly over his face. "I'm not really upset at him. I think he's upset with me."

"I don't think he is at all. More, upset with the situation. He doesn't like thinking about you going through something like this alone. He cares about you."

"He's the first one in a long time to," Alex all but whispered.

"Look at me, cariño," Claudia urged, her fingers sliding under Alex's chin. "That is not your fault. You do deserve that. To have someone care for you. That isn't disrespecting your mother, or anything else. It's not moving past her. It's just, moving forward with people. I would imagine your mamá would be happy to see that for you."

"It's just…it wasn't a big deal before," Alex finally admitted. "George—he made it sound like there was something wrong with me for taking care of myself. For not having help. My mom was gone. I didn't have a choice. I—"

"You didn't, I know," Claudia interrupted before he could work himself up. "You did what you had to survive. But others should have been there for you. Others should have helped. For that, George is upset. Because there is something wrong with adults not taking care of someone who is obviously in need of it." Claudia held up her hands. "That is not to say you are not capable or responsible. It is only to say that you deserve to have help and love. That is all."

"What if I don't agree with that?" Alex sheepishly asked. "What if I don't think I deserve it?"

Claudia rubbed his back. "Then let us show you that you do." She used her other hand to push the bowl of stew closer to him. "And you let us take care of you when we can and tell us when you need time. But most of all, you do things that you need right now. Like eating."

Alex laughed a little. "Yes ma'am." He resumed eating, letting Claudia fuss over him a little here and there.

Not long after he had finished a Claudia approved serving, a nurse knocked and entered his room.

"Good afternoon, Alex," she greeted. "And Miss Claudia, always good to see you as well."

"Hello, Sarah," Claudia replied. "They got you on peds now?"

"They do," Sarah replied with a smile. "It's an improvement for sure. Especially with patients like Alex." Alex blushed at the compliment. "How are you today, sweetie?"

"Okay," he answered. "Um, coughed some this morning but Martha got me some ice chips and it helped."

"Good. How's the chest feeling?"

"Little sore," he continued.

"I figured you might be after getting up and walking around some yesterday." Sarah went about checking on him. "Speaking of which, we are going to have you up more if you feel up to it."

"Okay," Alex sighed.

"So much so that we are going to go ahead and remove your catheter so you can have more free range." Alex blushed at the mention of the annoying foley catheter. "I know getting up and down to use the bathroom will suck, but it's an improvement. There are also things we can leave for you just in case."

"Okay," Alex repeated quickly, causing both women to smile.

"I'll step out and let you get to it then," Claudia said. "In fact, I think I will go find George and John. I'll send John up in just a bit, once I'm sure that you are finished with Sarah." Claudia leaned down and gave Alex a kiss on the forehead.

"Thank you," Alex said to her before she left.

Sarah turned back to him once Claudia had pulled the door shut. "Okay, kiddo, this won't take long and won't be painful. Promise." Sarah set to work, continuing to explain what she was doing as she worked. Alex appreciated the updates and tried to relax as she did each step. It wasn't long before the tubes were all out and everything was back in order.

"Alright," Sarah said once everything was cleaned up. "If you need help getting up or anything at all, feel free to buzz us or let your parents help you. Whenever you do get up, just unplug your monitor and push it to the bathroom. The battery should be fine for short trips and all. We'd like to see you walk around the floor again tonight as well."

Alex nodded. "I can try."

"That's all we want," Sarah ensured. "We know you still don't feel well. Your fever is still hanging in there and I know that zaps what little energy you have. It's largely why we haven't pushed you up more or taken up the catheter sooner."

"Thank you."

Sarah flashed him one last smile. "Just call if you need anything."

With that she left Alex alone. He sagged against the pillows. He could tell that he was improving, but he still felt rough. He still felt exhausted more often than not. He still felt sick. He closed his eyes.

 _When would this get better?_

Another knock startled him out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes to see John shifting from foot to foot in the doorway, carrying a bright blue bag.

"Hey," Alex greeted.

"Hey yourself," John replied, smiling as he walked in. Alex shuffled closer to the edge of the bed, allowing room for John without a second thought. This had become their pattern. John would visit in the afternoons, taking up residence on the side of Alex's bed with his laptop or a book. "How are you?" he asked, sitting down on the bed and pulling Alex into his side. He set the bag down at the other end by his feet.

"Okay," Alex sighed, resting against John's shoulder. "Rough morning. But I can pee on my own again. So I guess it evens out."

John laughed a little before turning more somber. "What happened this morning?"

"Knew you'd focus on that one."

John shrugged and smirked. "Not saying that control of you own ability to pee isn't important but…"

"I know," Alex replied. "I had a really bad coughing fit when Martha was here this morning. Woke her up and really scared her."

"I'd imagine it was scary for you too," John stated, nudging Alex's shoulder.

Alex shrugged. "It wasn't like I couldn't breath this time. Just hurt."

"That's still enough reason to worry." John squeezed his hand. "Is that was you and George were discussing?"

"Kind of," Alex replied, not elaborating.

John took the hint. "Well, I'm here if you need to talk about it."

Alex sent him a smile. "Thank you. Promise it's not you right now. Your abuela just kind of has me all talked out on the subject."

"Ah," John continued with a fond smile. "She's good for that. I should know."

Alex gave him a look, urging him to continue.

"Well, um, you know how I said I don't really get along with my dad?"

Alex nodded.

"It's more complicated than that. He doesn't really approve of me. I'm too liberal. I'm too artsy. I'm too argumentative. I'm too, well, gay."

"Ah," Alex sighed, squeezing John's hand.

"We fought a lot before I came to live here with abuela. He tells all his buddies that he thought it would be best if his children had a stable household where he wasn't always traveling as a senator. But he really just wanted to get rid of me and save face at the same time."

"John—"

"It's okay," John continued. "I'm not telling you for pity. I'm telling you because I was able to get through all that by talking to my abuela and the Washingtons and the group."

Alex rubbed a hand over his face. "George and I were arguing because I let it slip that I didn't have anyone to help me when I had my first surgery. He was upset about it and tried to make me see that I needed help. I don't know…"

John leaned over and chanced a kiss on Alex's cheek. "Well, I think you should let them help you some. If for no other reason than I would selfishly like to see you out of here sooner rather than later so I can take you on a hot date."

"Date, huh?" Alex nervously scoffed.

"A hot date," John repeated with a smirk.

"Ha! Not sure the word hot can be used to describe more than my fever right now."

"Nah," John reassured.

"Yeah," Alex laughed. "I can barely walk to the bathroom without being winded. I'm not much of a date right now."

"Well, I still want to take you out." John rubbed the back of his neck anxiously as well. "I like you."

Alex blushed. "Laurens, I like you a lot."

John's face lit up with a smile. He leaned over and gave Alex a kiss on the lips. It was chaste, but sweet. The movement sent the bag cascading to the floor.

"Oh!" John hopped down and retrieved the fallen item. "I nearly forgot." He climbed back on the bed and handed Alex the bag. "This is for you."

"John, you didn't have to do anything." Alex took the bag reluctantly.

John just rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, Ham."

Alex reached inside and pulled out a small stuffed turtle. The toy was covered in vibrant, soft green fur. Even its spotted shell was fluffy to the touch. Its little face was graced with a smile, making Alex grin as well.

"Do you like it?" John asked nervously.

"Love it," Alex laughed. "It's cute." Alex bit his lip before continuing. "Kind of reminds me of you."

"Hey, that's supposed to be my line!" John huffed.

Alex rolled his eyes this time, though the blush creeping on his cheeks gave away his true feelings about the statement. "I love it, John. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Ham." John pulled him in for a hug. "Turtles are my favorite and I couldn't resist."

"It's really nice. Thank you again." Alex settled back against John's side, clutching the turtle.

"No problem, man. Everyone deserves something goofy and soft when they're sick." John ran his finger through Alex's hair and gave him another kiss to his forehead. "And sick people also deserve to watch movies in bed with a 'cute' guy."

"Mmm that does sound good."

"Want to start the first disc of Game of Thrones?" John asked. "I left them in your laptop bag the other day."

"That would be nice."

John grabbed the necessary items from Alex's bag and settled down next to him. He sorted Alex's blankets and laid down next to him, balancing the laptop on his knees as he started the show.

Alex didn't last long. No sooner had Daenerys been gifted the dragon eggs, Alex was fast asleep.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Alex woke hours later to the sounds of the Game of Thrones score blending in with his heart monitor. He blinked his eyes, felt a tickle of thick curls against his cheek.

"Are you with me, mon ami?"

"Laf?" Alex said around a breathy yawn. "When did you get here?"

"About thirty minutes ago," he replied. "John and his grandmother left then. Claudia shooed George out so that he could get some rest. He'll be back in a bit with Martha. They're stopping to get something to eat and bringing it in. Doctors said you are allowed normal food if you want it. Not stuck with the hospital slop."

"Thank god for that," Alex sighed. He rubbed at his eyes. "Didn't mean to fall asleep on John."

"I highly doubt he minded," Laf said with a wink, causing Alex's face to redden. "Relax, John is quite smitten with you."

"You think?"

"I know, mon ami. I know." Laf climbed out of the bed and moved to rummage through some bags he had apparently brought with him. "I heard you are free to get up and down as you please now. And when you have to." He pointed towards the bathroom across the room.

"Apparently," Alex huffed.

Laf continued. "I brought you some sweats. Nurses said you could change into pajama pants at least. Thought you might like to before we left."

"Left? Where are we going?" Alex questioned anxiously.

"Not far," Laf assured with a smile. "I just thought we could walk around the unit some before Martha and George bring food. The nurses said you hadn't yet and thought it would be good for me to help once you awoke. There's a rec room down the hall. Want to check it out?"

Alex bit his lip. "If you want to."

Laf handed over some pants. "Alex, I only want to do things that you will like and will help you. We have to walk some, but we don't have to go anywhere specific, mon petit."

Alex took the pants. "I'm not a little one, Laf."

"You aren't far from it." Laf moved to the side of the bed and unplugged the IV stand from the wall so they could move it. Alex swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat on the edge. "Here, let me help you with that."

"Laf, I—"

"Just give me the pants and let me help you," Laf warned with a worried look. Alex relented and Laf tugged the pants over Alex's feet. "Here. Hold them up and then just pull as you stand."

Alex nodded then did as he was told. It was much easier than what he had planned to do and was able to stand without falling. "Thank you."

"Of course. This is what I am here for." Laf looped an arm around Alex's waist. "Comment ça va?"

"I'm okay," Alex replied. "Though, not going to lie, walking down the hall that far sounds mildly terrifying."

Laf nodded. "We shall go slow and stop when needed. We can play a game or something in the rec room once we get there too. I'm in no hurry."

"Good," Alex sighed, "because I'm definitely not winning races any time soon."

"Come on," Laf urged, nudging him forward carefully. "If we want to get down there before dark then I suggest we start moving."

"It's four o'clock."

"You're the one who warned that you walk at, how you say, a snail's pace?"

Alex rolled his eyes. "Point taken."

Laf just grinned as Alex conceded and shuffled along beside him. It was still painful to walk distances and his muscles protested at the prolonged use. But with Lafayette's assistance, he made it to the rec room at the end of the hall without needing the nurses to intervene or help him return to his room.

Kids played in various corners while parents watched from the various seats and pillows in the floor. Most children were playing with the video and board games set up around the room. Others had dollhouses and trucks scattered about. Laf steered Alex around the various antics and helped him to sit on the couch in the corner as soon as they entered the room.

"Thank you," Alex said shakily.

"Of course." Laf adjusted the IV pole so that it was close to Alex and ensured that the wires were not tangled. "How does it feel to be up?"

"Merdique," Alex cursed in French, assuming none of the nearby children would understand what he had said.

Laf huffed at the reply and took a seat next to him. "That good, no?"

Alex groaned and leaned his head back against the couch. "It's good to not be in bed. But it still doesn't feel great."

"It will." Laf squeezed his knee. "It is no fun. I am sure. But you are improving. For that, I will celebrate."

Alex turned so that he could see Laf's beaming face. He returned the smile with a small one of his own. "Well, I think celebrations are limited at the moment. But I could possibly be persuaded to play a game while we are here."

If possible, Laf's grin doubled at the mention of a game. "Magnifique!" Laf leaned forward and looked around the room. "Anything you would like?"

"Um, well, I don't know a lot of board games, honestly," Alex admitted. "And I've never really been able to play video games so—"

"We will fix both of those once you're home," Laf interrupted seriously.

"So," Alex continued around a laugh, "cards? I know how to play rummy, poker, war, bla—"

"I declare war!" Laf exclaimed, snatching the cards off the nearby table.

"That sounds good," Alex replied, clearly amused at his foster brother's excitement.

Lafayette shuffled and dealt the cards. It wasn't long before the two boys were engaged in a rather heated game.

"Competitive much?" Alex teased and Laf did a small happy dance after his ten beat Alex's two for a battle of war.

"Who's the best? C'est moi!"

Alex rolled his eyes and threw down an Ace, beating Laf's king. "Ha! Don't think so, my French friend."

"Hmph," Laf snorted. "We will see about that!" He threw down a six of hearts just as Alex threw a six of clubs. They threw down three cards face down before turning up the fourth. Alex showed a respectable jack of hearts while Laf had a king.

Alex groaned and pushed the cards toward Laf as he danced and bounced in his seat.

"Still the best!" Laf happily asserted. "Watch me engagin' em! Escapin' em! Enragin' em! I'm—"

"Late for dinner," a voice laughed next to them.

Both boys turned to see Martha walking towards them. She took a seat next to Alex, rubbing his back and pressing a kiss to his forehead.

"Oops," Laf sheepishly stated. "I lost track of time."

"It's fine, Laf," Martha assured. "I was just teasing you." She took note of all the cards between the boys. "Looks like you found something fun to pass the time."

"Yeah," Alex replied. "Nurses wanted me to walk some more and Laf thought this might be a nice change."

"I hope it was, sweetheart," Martha added, brushing hair back from his face and into his ponytail. "You boys ready for some food? I picked up some pasta on the way in. Does that sound okay, Alex? If not we can have something brought up from the cafe—"

"No," Alex quickly interrupted, blushing when he realized how fast he had spoken. "I mean, pasta sounds nice." He rubbed at the back of his neck.

Martha giggled at him. "Already tired of hospital food?"

"Always," Alex sighed.

"Well, come on then." Martha stood and motioned for Laf to do the same. "Let's get you back to your room so you can eat. I left George with the food. Who knows how many breadsticks he will have snagged by now."

Laf and Martha each took one side and helped Alex stand. Laf sorted the cards back into some semblance of order and placed them back on the table. The two then assisted Alex as he walked back to his room. They chatted over Alex, but he remained silent, thinking of what to say to George.

Alex knew he had to say something, but for once words were failing him. He couldn't decide on a way to describe his feelings on their argument without leading to another. He was at a loss. But he wanted to show that he understood. That he appreciated George in some way.

"Damn," Martha cursed as they approached Alex's room. "I forgot drinks for all of us."

"There is a set of vending machines down the hall," Laf offered. "I can help gather them with you."

"That'll work," Martha replied. "Let's get Alex back to his room first then we can grab those."

"Thanks," Alex muttered as they approached the door.

"Of course," Laf stated. "There's no need for you to go that far. Especially not at this snail's pace of yours, mon ami."

Alex just rolled his eyes while Martha scolded Lafayette lightly for teasing.

"What has Laf done now?" George interjected as they walked into the room. Pasta, salad, and bread were already divvied out and waiting for them.

"Hey!" Laf protested as he approached the bed with Alex.

Martha moved so that George could take over in helping. "He's just teasing Alex."

"Ah," George chuckled.

"We forgot drinks, honey," Martha went on to say. "Laf and I will be right back. Coke okay for you, George?"

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Alex?"

"Oh, I'm fine with my water," he replied, leaning into George as Martha let go completely. He initially tensed, worried that George would be angry with him, but soon found himself too sore and relaxed.

"We'll be back," Laf said with a salute towards George.

"Here," George instructed Alex as the others left. "Let's get you back in bed."

"Y-yeah, that would be good," Alex shakily agreed.

George guided him to the bed and plugged in the IV pole. He then helped Alex push up in the bed and lay down more. He leaned in to adjust the pillows and in that moment Alex decided how to act.

He leaned forwards and wrapped his arms around George's shoulders. The man stiffened in surprise for a moment before returning the hug himself.

"Alex?"

"Thank you for everything," Alex simply said in lieu of an apology.

George hugged back, pressing a soft kiss to the top of Alex's head.

Alex still didn't know if he believed George just yet, but he was starting to see his side. Maybe just a little at least.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I am so sorry about how long it took to get this posted! I've had chapter 9 done and posted on my AO3 account for awhile, but I couldn't get it to upload here for some reason. I had to break down and download a second internet browser just to get this posted. Anyway, I am sorry. I appreciate all the reviews and the patience. This story has probably one more chapter left and it will then be done. Thank you again and hope this does not disappoint.

* * *

Ten days. Ten long days. Days filled with nurses poking and prodding. Walks to the rec room in the afternoons. Doctors worrying over his fever and his weight. Ten days in the hospital with the Washington's, Lafayette, and John always by Alex's side. They all made good on their promise, staying with him through it all. Alex didn't know what to make of it, but he tried not to question it. Not yet. But now, the real test came. He was going home.

"Once the nurse comes in, I'll carry these things down and pull the car around, dear," Martha told Alex as she gathered up the cards and balloons strewn about his hospital room. "George is on his way up now and will help you get downstairs with the nurses."

"Okay," Alex softly replied. His legs hung over the edge of the bed as his fingers fiddled with a string on the blankets anxiously. He stared down at the IV still sticking out from the back of his hand. The nurses should be coming to remove it soon.

Martha walked over and ran a hand through his long hair soothingly. "Nervous?"

Alex shrugged in reply, but knew Martha noticed how his shoulders shook.

"It's normal to feel anxious about it all." Martha sat down on the bed beside him. "I haven't told you about the time George was hospitalized for ten days have I?"

"No, ma'am."

"I swear," Martha laughed next to him, "you two are more alike than you realize." She moved her hand from Alex's hair to his back, rubbing comforting circles as she spoke. "Well, it was when we were first married. George was fresh out of the military and was starting a new job working in the governor's office. It was his first political job and he couldn't have been more excited. Unfortunately for George, his lungs decided to throw a wrench in his plans."

Alex turned to look at Martha. She sent him a small smile before continuing.

"Well, my dear George started to feel poorly a few days before he was to start this dream job of his. He neglected to tell me this of course. Instead he carried on like he was fine, hiding coughs from me and ignoring any warming sign his body gave him. He went to work. Worked for, oh, I think a week despite the fact that he was sick as a dog. He collapsed during his first big meeting. Case of pneumonia. Pretty bad one given how much he ignored it. Sound familiar?"

The glint in Martha's eyes informed Alex that she was simply teasing him. "Maybe," he replied with a smirk of his own.

"Just like you, he ended up in the hospital in worse shape than he expected. They had to put tubes in to drain the fluid and everything. He spent ten days confined to a bed before the doctors allowed him to go home. I think he had asked them daily if he could leave, but come the day of release, he was shaking like a leaf at the thought of having to manage things on his own and dealing with all the work he'd missed."

Alex shifted nervously. "That sounds very familiar," he relented.

"I thought it might." Martha nudged his shoulder with her own. "I'll tell you the same thing I told him that day. Right now, you're going to have to let us help you. Right now, work isn't going to be the most important thing on your plate. Getting better is. Giving your body time to heal and your mind time to recover from all of this." She gave Alex a hug from the side. "You've been through a lot. I hope you will give yourself time and not push yourself all at once."

Alex sighed. "I'm going to be behind in everything. And I'm already putting a lot of stress on you guys and—"

"Alex, we're fine," Martha interrupted. "We've been stressed because we are worried and care. That is not something you need to apologize for. Ever." She squeezed his arm. "As for school, we've already talked to Principal Franklin. He, along with your teachers, has come up with a plan of action for you. They have prepared your workload for the coming weeks and will allow you to do it at your own pace until you return to school. They plan to upload it to their online system so that you can work and turn it in, as you are able to. Furthermore, they have agreed to record lectures and upload them to their online system for you as well."

"What about tests?" Alex questioned, still concerned that it wouldn't work.

"Franklin has agreed to bring them to the house if needed and monitor you himself. However, many will be put online for you to take. Franklin is giving you a lot of trust, and has ensured your teachers that you will not cheat if they do so."

Alex shook his head in disbelief. "But why?"

"He believes you deserve a shot. First and foremost." Martha moved a strand of hair out of his face. "And I think to make up for Thomas Jefferson's behavior as well."

Alex snorted at the mention of his gym teacher. "So what happens with my gym class? I can't make up that work. Not with everything and the doctors and—"

"Shh," Martha soothed. "You're right; physical activities like that will be out of the question for some time. Franklin is aware of that. George spoke with him extensively on what your doctors believed your limits would be. Because of that, Franklin has decided to waive your gym requirement due to health concerns. He feels that would be the smartest option given what has happened already. When you return to school, you'll be placed in the library as an aide during that time period. It will give you a new elective credit that will take the place of your gym class for now."

"Wait…really?"

"Really," Martha replied with a smile. "You'll have to work in the library during that period, don't get us wrong. But it also tends to turn into a free period, according to Franklin, so it will give you extra time to work and catch up if needed." Martha put an arm around Alex. "What do you think?"

"I-I, well, I won't throw away my shot." He gave Martha a shy, tentative look.

She pulled him into another hug and kissed his forehead. "And I hope you also use this as a time to heal. Not work yourself to the ground."

"I'll try."

"All I ask." She squeezed his shoulder once more.

Before either could continue the conversation, the nurse knocked on the door. "Hello guys," she said kindly. "How're you today, Alex?"

"I'm okay, Sarah," Alex replied. "Nervous but okay."

Sarah smiled in return. "That's pretty normal, kiddo. But let's see how you feel once the IV's and all are taken out, huh?"

"That would be nice."

Martha stood from the bed. "I'll let you get to it. Alex, I'll be waiting downstairs for you. George should be up soon. He was just finishing up some things in the billing department downstairs."

Alex frowned at the mention of the bills he was no doubt wracking up for the Washington's.

"Don't do that," Martha scolded softly. "I can practically see your brain working from here."

Sarah giggled at the exchange as she moved across the room with her supplies. "I think you would do good to listen to her."

Alex sighed and nodded. With that, Martha left with the last of his get well gifts and some of his things. Sarah set to work on removing the last of the wires and tubes connected to him.

"Alright kiddo," she said. "You'll feel a slight pinch and there will probably be some blood."

"Okay." Alex was getting tired of blood and pain.

"I know; it's getting old, huh?"

"Yeah." Alex watched as she gently pulled out the needle in his hand and quickly replaced it with a gauze pad to stop the blood flow.

"It's not been much fun for you," Sarah continued, grabbing tape to secure the gauze in place. "But you've handled this all better than grown men though. I can say that from experience."

Alex looked up to meet her eyes. "Thank you." He rubbed the back of his neck with his other hand. "And…not just for that."

Sarah smiled. "I would say any time, but I don't really want to see you back here."

"I second that."

Alex looked up to see George leaning against the door. "Hey," he greeted.

"You about ready to get out of here?" George replied.

"I think so," Alex answered.

"What do you think, Sarah?"

"I think he's all set," Sarah said, finish up with Alex. "Martha has his recovery information and appointment cards and all. We gave it to her earlier this morning. All Alex needs is to change into a shirt now that all the wires have been removed and he's all set."

"I think I can manage that," George stated, already moving towards Alex's backpack and pulling out a zip up sweatshirt.

"Good. I'll grab a wheelchair for you then." Sarah squeezed Alex's hand and left.

"Thought this might be the easiest to change into," George offered.

"Yeah, my arms still don't like lifting motion," Alex sighed.

"Martha went out and bought some button ups and zip ups for you until that changes. But it'll get there. Do you mind if I reach around to undo the gown?"

"That's fine." Alex ran a hand through his hair. "I know it will. Just sucks."

"How are you feeling? Really?"

"I don't know," Alex sighed as George pulled off the gown. They both got a good look at the bandages and scars the gown had been hiding. "God that looks awful."

"Hey." George lifted Alex's chin up so he couldn't stare at his chest. "It doesn't. It looks painful, yes. But it does not look awful. It's okay."

Alex closed his eyes and swallowed thickly. "I'm scared."

"That's pretty understandable." George guided Alex's arms into the arms of the sweatshirt. "And you know what? We're scared too, Alex."

Alex's eyes shot open. "What?"

"We're all scared too. We don't want you to have to go through anything else like this. But we know there is still a pretty long road ahead of you. So we're scared too."

Alex swallowed again. "What if I end up back here?"

George zipped up the hoodie so that it covered Alex's bandages. "Then we'll deal with it and go from there." George put a hand on each of Alex's shoulders and squeezed gently. "But we're going to do all we can to try and prevent that from happening for your sake. Okay?"

Alex met George's gaze. "O-okay."

"Now," George clapped his shoulders, "what do you say we get the hell out of here?"

Alex laughed loudly at George's word choice. "Yeah. That sounds good."

George gathered up the last of Alex's things and placed them in his backpack. Sarah returned with a wheelchair. She helped Alex slide off the bed and into it. George slung the bag over his shoulders and followed behind Sarah as she wheeled Alex out of his room and towards the elevator.

"Do either of you have any more questions or concerns?" Sarah asked as the elevator began its descent.

"I think I'm okay," George replied. "Martha has all the paperwork and the information already in the car."

"Alex?" Sarah prodded, rubbing his shoulder gently.

"Huh?" Alex twisted a little in his chair so he could see her face. "Oh, um, I think I have a handle on the whole 'don't do anything right now' thing." George raised an eyebrow at that. "Mostly."

Sarah shook her head fondly at him. "Just don't overdo anything and let this guy back here help you out."

"And call the doctor if things start to feel worse?"

"Exactly." Sarah ruffled his hair. "And let that boy of yours spoil you. I think you could use some of that too." She winked at him, making him blush as George laughed in the background.

"I think we all plan to spoil him," George chuckled as they reached the ground floor.

"Good," Sarah replied with a smile. She pushed Alex towards the door. Martha's car came into view; the woman stepped out as soon as the glass doors slid open. "It looks like your chariot awaits."

Alex rolled his eyes but couldn't help but laugh a little. "Thank you." He looked up at her and smiled. George walked around to help Martha ensure that the backseat was set up for Alex.

Sarah gave him a small hug. "You're welcome sweetheart. Let these guys take care of you, huh?"

He looked towards the car as his foster parents argued good-naturedly over the state of the pillows they were arranging. "I'll try."

Sarah squeezed his arm. "Good luck. I better just see you back for check ups."

"Yes ma'am."

Sarah winked at him and pushed him towards the car. She steadied the wheelchair as George helped Alex out, taking on most of his wait as he transferred him to the backseat. Alex couldn't help but groan at the movement and relaxed as soon as he fell back against the pillows Martha had laid out. Sarah waved at him as she stepped away from the car. He returned the gesture, knowing he would miss her kindness. He still couldn't quite believe how different this experience had been from his first surgery.

"Are you okay back there, dear?" Martha asked, climbing into the driver's seat once more. George followed behind her on the passenger side, glancing back at Alex.

"Yeah," he answered around a yawn. "George fixed the seat belt so I could lie down some. Well, mostly at least."

George chuckled. "It's not a long drive at least. Then you can be back in your own bed."

"That would be great," he replied. He closed his eyes as the car began moving, and they didn't open again until they pulled in front of their home and George gently woke him.

"Hey, Alex," he said softly. "We're here, bud."

Alex blinked and rubbed at his eyes. He flinched as the motion aggravated bruises on his hands from the various IVs he had had.

"Easy." George pulled his hand away from his face a little.

"I'm okay," Alex mumbled. He felt exhausted, but he tried to push himself forward in the backseat.

George bit his lip as he watched until he finally took action. He slowly moved forward and knelt down so that he could pull Alex out of the seat. He lifted him into his arms, letting Alex's head settle on his shoulder. He kept an arm under his legs and the other around his back.

"You don't have—"

"I know," George assured, letting Martha shut the car doors and unlock the house for him. "Let me." George adjusted his hold on Alex as they entered the house, and for once, Alex didn't argue. He was tired and it did feel nice to be taken care of for once.

"Alex?" Laf called from the couch, jumping up at the sound of footsteps on the foyer.

"We're home," Martha called as he all but ran into the room.

"Slow down, son," George chuckled. "Let's not knock us all over. Don't think Alex wants another trip to the hospital."

"Not particularly," Alex yawned in reply.

"No worries, mon ami," Laf replied, rubbing Alex's arm where it dangled. "We will do whatever it takes to prevent that."

Alex sent Laf a smile at the words.

"Yes," George agreed. "Like getting you up to bed so you can rest."

Before Alex could protest, George set off toward the stairs. He carried him up to his bedroom and carefully tucked him under the covers.

"Thank you," Alex muttered, settling into his bed for the first time in ten days, in the room that he never truly realized was his home until he was away.

"Get some rest, son." George leaned down and kissed the top of his head. For once, Alex didn't feel the need to correct his word choice. Instead, he fell asleep with a smile gracing his face.

It was the best sleep he'd gotten in a long time.

xxxxxxxx

"What are we going to do?" Martha sighed, worry obvious in her voice. "I have to stay at the office all evening to meet with the new clients."

"I don't know," George continued. "I don't think I can get out of those meetings in D.C. either"

"I could back out of my trip," Laf added.

None of them had noticed Alex and John in the kitchen's doorway. Alex had been home from the hospital for a few days now. George, Martha, and Laf had all made sure that he was well taken care of, bringing him food, helping him to walk around his house, helping him with his medications. They were all fantastic, but they were all starting to be mother hens in their own ways. John was as well, but Alex was finding that John could be persuaded with a kiss to do small things, such as trips down the stairs.

"No you can't," Alex piped up, giving himself away. He leaned against the door jam, his blanket, the gift from the Schuyler's, draped around him.

"Alex," Martha gasped. "Baby, how what are you doing out of bed? And those stairs!" She rushed to his side, running her hands over him and checking to make sure he did not pull out stitches.

"I'm okay," he muttered. "Stairs suck, but John helped. And you shouldn't change your plans because of me."

"Mon ami—"

"No, you've been looking forward to that trip for weeks," Alex interrupted. "You said the French Club has been doing everything they could to get to that international festival."

"But you're more important," Laf assured.

"It's not fair to you," Alex continued.

"Alex, let's sit down," Martha instructed, guiding him towards the nearest chair. John followed, sending him an apologetic look as he took the barstool next to him.

"I'm fine," he sighed, although his voice gave out on him, hinting at just how out of breathe the trip down the stairs had left him.

"Alex, we know you're doing fine, but it's only been two weeks since your surgery. Laf and I would be in D.C. all day tomorrow, and likely spending the night considering a snowstorm is supposed to go through tomorrow. And Martha has dinner meetings in town til late with new clients for her firm. You'd be home alone all day, with the potential for a snowstorm. I'm sorry, but we can't do that."

"I could stay over," John offered. Everyone in the kitchen turned to him all at once, causing him to laugh. "I know Alex's medication regime and can help him around the house. Plus, if something were to happen, I could always drive him back to the hospital or call for help." He shrugged. "Would be better than everyone cancelling and rearranging their plans."

"I don't know," Martha said softly.

"It would help," George added, much to Alex's relief.

"John could help with things if needed," Laf continued.

"Guys, I'm right here," Alex huffed, not caring if it was rude. "Stop talking like I don't have a say."

George laughed, squeezing Alex's shoulder. "Okay, I think he has a point. Martha, let John help. Besides, I'm sure Alex would like some alone time with him anyway." He winked at Alex as the boy blushed fiercely.

Laf cackled from the other end of the counter. "Oui. Let's give les amoureux some time to themselves."

This time, both John and Alex reddened at the words.

"John," Martha spoke up, ignoring her husband and Laf's teasing. "Will your grandmother mind?"

"Nah, she's already said I can stay over any time I need or want while Alex recovers." John took Alex's hand under the counter. "So it won't be a big deal."

"Okay," Martha relented. "But double check with Abuela, please." Martha leaned over and kissed both their foreheads. "I have to go to work for now, but let me know what she says."

"Yes, ma'am!" John exclaimed, squeezing Alex's hand and nudging his shoulder. Alex frowned at him in return. "Hey, what's wrong?" John spoke softly so the others wouldn't hear as they all went back to their tasks, leaving the kitchen to carry on with their day.

"I don't need a babysitter," Alex sighed.

"Good, because last I checked I was your boyfriend," John teased.

Alex huffed out a laugh. "Is that what we are calling this?"

"I think so," John continued playfully. "Therefore, this is not me babysitting you but is me concocting a brilliant plan to get my boyfriend alone so we can have our first real date."

"Date, huh?" Alex blushed as he spoke. "I'm sorry, but I doubt I'll be much of one." He pointed to his chest.

"Hey," John slung his arm around Alex's shoulders. "I liked hanging out with your ass when you were laid up in a hospital bed half asleep against me."

Alex groaned and hung his head. "You shouldn't have to—"

"I don't have to do anything and you aren't forcing me to. I'm choosing to spend a day with my new boyfriend who I want to get to know better." John leaned over and kissed Alex's lips. "And maybe kiss some more too."

Alex smiled at that. "How can I say no to that?"

"Say no to what?" Laf asked, returning back to the kitchen.

"This," John replied, kissing Alex once more.

Laf just rolled his eyes and smiled at the boys. "Save something for tomorrow, mon amis."

"Whatever you say," John huffed. "But I should get going. Alex, do you want help back upstairs or—"

"I don't really want to go back up to bed just yet," Alex interjected.

"Want to watch some movies down here with me?" Laf asked. "Martha has to run out for work and George is working in his office upstairs."

"Yeah, sure," Alex replied. He started to move from his barstool on his own, but slipped a little. John and Laf both grabbed him, helping him to get back on his feet without falling or jarring himself too harshly.

"Easy," John gasped.

"Ouch," Alex wheezed, rubbing at his chest.

"Alex?" Laf prodded.

"I'm okay. Just, jarred myself," he sighed. "I'm sorry."

John pressed a kiss to his temple. "Don't apologize."

Laf ran a hand through Alex's messy hair. "You have no need to."

Alex took in a shaky breath. "Okay. I'm okay."

"Alright," John relented. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Thank you." Alex leaned up and gave him a kiss goodbye.

"Have fun at the festival, Laf," John called out as he walked towards the door.

"Merci!" Laf replied, never taking his hands off Alex's shoulders. Once John was out the door, he looked back at his foster brother. "Are you sure you are okay, Alex?"

"Yeah. My foot just slipped and it jarred me. I'm okay." Alex rubbed a hand over his face. "Not going to break, Laf."

Laf pulled him into a hug. "I may need reminded of that for awhile. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Alex gave his shoulder a squeeze. "I don't mean to worry you."

Laf shrugged. "You aren't doing anything wrong. I just want you to feel better."

"I do. I am. Comparatively."

"Well, how about we take things slow for now?"

"Fine," Alex huffed. "Movie?"

"Oui! Movie! Hmm…Disney marathon? Are there any you haven't seen?"

"Um, I honestly think it would be easier to just say I've only seen _The Lion King_ and _Beauty and the Beast_ so—"

"That's so horrible! We must fix it!" Laf grabbed his hand and carefully pulled him towards the living room. The two spent the rest of the afternoon going through all of Laf's favorite movies. Alex fell back asleep about half way through, missing the end of _Mulan_. Laf didn't seem to mind. He let the movies play in the background and pulled Alex close. He let the boy sleep.

xxxxxx

"Are you sure you will be okay?" Martha asked. "It's already starting to snow. Maybe I should call in and cancel. I could just stay here and—"

"No," Alex stated vehemently. "I know these clients are a big deal for your firm. No."

"Alex's right, Mrs. W," John agreed. "We've got this."

Martha sighed wearily, rubbing a hand over her face. "Okay. I'm sorry. I just worry."

"No need to, ma'am," John assured. "We're just going to hang out and watch _Game of Thrones_."

"Please, Martha," Alex pleaded.

"Fine." She held her hands up in defeat. "But call me if something happens or if you think—"

"We will!" both boys exclaimed in unison.

"Alright. I'll take the hint." Martha kissed the boys goodbye and hurried out the door. The wind blew snow flurries in behind her as she closed it.

"Did Laf and George make it to D.C. alright?" John asked as they walked back toward the living room.

"Yeah." Alex shivered a little from the cold air. John pulled him close and wrapped the blanket tighter around him.

"Good. Wasn't sure if the weather was any worse over there."

"They said it's snowing, but nothing terrible."

"Yet," John laughed.

"Yet," Alex agreed. He took John's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Thanks for staying over. I know I was kind of bitching about needing a babysitter, but it's nice to have you here."

John replied by kissing him. "Always." John pulled Alex closer, deepening the kiss until Alex had to finally pull away to breathe. "Maybe should take it easy though? Cool it a little?"

"Thought this was supposed to be a date?" Alex groaned.

"Dates can include more than just kissing." John grabbed the remote and turned the TV onto HBO Go. He found the next episode of _Game of Thrones_ and set it to play. "Besides, I thought you wanted to see how season one ends?"

"Maybe…"

"Come here." John pulled Alex until the other boy was lying against his chest. They watched the show together, neither movie. Alex yelled at the screen as the final episodes played out, complaining about Joffrey and the events that unfounded. John just laughed and told him to continue to watch. Unfortunately, Alex fell asleep on the second episode of season two.

"Alex?"

"Hmm," Alex moaned sleepily. He opened his eyes and blinked at the dark room. "John?"

"Hey, sorry to wake you, but the power just went out. Do you know if the Washingtons have their generator already hooked up?"

Alex pushed himself into a sitting position on the couch. "Um, no. I don't know." He rubbed at his face. "What happened?"

John squeezed his shoulder. "It's okay. The power went off. The snowstorm just started picking up outside. It's okay."

"Fireplace?" Alex yawned.

"What?"

"We can turn the fireplace up," Alex clarified. "It's gas. I remember that much."

"Okay, we can do that. And blankets." John stood from the couch. "Hey! I have an idea!"

"Yes?" Alex pushed himself to the edge of the couch.

"Well, I said I wanted to make this a date."

"You did." Alex stood shakily. John steadied him.

"How about dinner inside a blanket fort? That way we can stay warm and it can be comfortable and kind of romantic."

Alex laughed at John's enthusiasm "That sounds nice."

"Help me find some blankets down here while I run upstairs? I know Martha keeps a bunch in the hall closet up there."

"Yeah, think there are some in the chest in here too."

"Perfect! I'll be right back."

Both boys set about grabbing blankets and extra pillows. They used the flashlights on their phones to navigate the darkened space. It wasn't long before John was setting up the blankets along and over the Washingtons' oversized sectional.

"Found some lanterns upstairs too," John informed Alex as he tied down the blankets. "I also snagged your laptop. Figured we could watch some movies after we ate."

"That works," Alex replied, easing himself down onto the arm of the couch. "Do you care to turn on that lantern? I'm not a big fan of the dark. Not during storms."

John nodded and did as he was asked. Alex was grateful he didn't press.

"How are we going to cook?"

"Gas stove," John replied. "Just need to find some matches or a lighter. I'm not much of a cook, but I think I can handle a can of Cambell's."

"Works for me." Alex's phone pinged in his hands.

Laf: _George and I are stuck in D.C. Trains have shut down. You okay?_

"Which one is freaking out first?" John asked, pointing to the phone.

"Laf," Alex sighed, typing out a reply.

"You should probably call Martha while you are at it."

"Probably." Alex clicked on Martha's contact and let the phone dial the call.

"I'll go start food," John said. "Chicken or veggie?"

"Veggie please."

"You got it!" John hurried off to the kitchen to start cooking while Alex talked to Martha.

"We're okay," Alex said as soon as Martha answered.

" _What's wrong?"_

"Nothing. Um, the power went out. I just wanted to let you know that we're okay. We set the fireplace up and grabbed some blankets."

" _Damn! I'll head back home now and—"_

"No! Martha, you should stay in town. It looks pretty bad out and it's starting to get late. Don't try to come home in that."

" _But—"_

"Please? John is here and we're okay. I don't want you to try to get back in this weather."

" _Fine. Promise you will call if something changes?"_

"Yes ma'am."

" _Okay,"_ Martha sighed. _"Keep me posted if you can. Love you baby."_

Alex swallowed thickly at her words. "Love you too."

The call disconnected. He stared at the phone for a few moments, surprised at how easy the words were to say. He had never said that to a foster parent before, but this time…

"Alex? Do you want bread with this?" John called from the kitchen.

"Yeah, sounds good!" Alex got up and walked into the kitchen, brushing off his thoughts. John had fixed another lantern on the counter, illuminating his work. "Smells good."

"Ha, it's just Cambell's. Pretty hard to screw up."

"Hmm." Alex walked up behind him and wrapped his arms around John. "Still. Thank you."

John set the spoon on the counter and twisted in Alex's arms. He kissed him. "Any time."

Alex hugged him tighter. "I'm sorry I'm not much of a date. Hell, not much of a boyfriend really."

John pushed him away so that he could look him in the face. "Hush. I told you, I chose to be with you. I like you, a lot. I liked you when I first met you."

"You threw a snowball at me," Alex teased.

"Yeah, but isn't that what you're supposed to do? Throw things at your crush?"

"Only if you're five."

John laughed. "I'm just playing. But seriously, I want to try this. I think it could be something really good."

"I'm not sure I'm any good," Alex sighed softly.

"I disagree with that and will just have to prove you wrong." John kissed him deeply, earning a low moan from Alex.

"As much as I hate to stop that," Alex said as he broke away from the kiss, "I don't want to burn down the kitchen."

"That would probably be bad." John turned back to the soup. Alex took his pills while John finished heating it up. They then divvied it out into bowls and found the bread from the town's bakery in the cupboard. They carried everything back to the living room and set up camp on the couch. John made sure to fix the lanterns so they could see before he joined Alex on the cushions.

"Thanks for bringing those down," Alex said in between bights of soup.

"You're welcome. I'm not a big fan of the dark either."

Alex bit his lip. "I, um, used to not mind. But I ended up in the dark for a few days after that hurricane. After that…" Alex shrugged, not knowing how to finish it.

"I can't blame you. That sounds pretty horrible."

Alex nodded. "It wasn't fun."

"I'm really sorry that happened to you."

Alex hung his head. "It could have been worse."

"True," John agreed. "But that doesn't mean what you went through wasn't terrible."

"Maybe," Alex shrugged.

"Not trying to make you uncomfortable," John added. "I just mean that you don't have to compare yourself to others or belittle your own experiences."

Alex bit his lip once more. "I think I'm very used to having others belittle them. Kind of the norm there for awhile."

"I wish I could kick all their asses for treating you that way."

Alex huffed a mirthless laugh. "You could take them. Wouldn't be hard. But I kind of hope I never see them again."

"I don't blame you there." John took Alex hand for a moment. "Are you happier? With the Washingtons?"

Alex nodded quickly. "That's never been the problem here." He set his empty soup bowl to the side. "It's just, different. Not bad. But…"

"It takes time to get used to," John finished, earning a look from Alex. He took the empty bowls and set them in the floor next to the couch. "I felt the same way when I first moved in with Abuela. After everything with my dad." He shook his head. "I didn't know what to expect and it took some time."

"I think I feel the same right now. I know they're trying to take care of me and want to, but I'm used to doing things for myself. So it's weird."

"Yeah, it is." John sent him a sympathetic smile. "It took me awhile to accept that Abuela wanted to do those things for me."

"Does it get easier?"

"Some." John reached up and caressed his cheek. "Takes time but it feels nice; to know people care about you like that. It's a good change."

"Mmm." Alex took John's hand and kissed it. "Maybe in more ways than one."

"Ha! Maybe." John kissed him. "I will say, kissing you is a nice change."

"Definitely," Alex readily agreed. "It might be my new favorite thing."

"Might, huh? Well, I will just have to convince you more then." John helped Alex adjust so that they were lying down on the large couch. He pulled the blankets tightly over them. Others hung about their heads, making the fort's roof. Pillows were stacked in every direction around them.

Alex twisted a little so that he was facing John where he lay. "I think I'm going to like this challenge." He dove in for another kiss.

The boys spent the rest of the night in their fort with the fireplace roaring across from them. After awhile, they turned on the laptop and began watching various DVDs until they both fell asleep, arms wrapped around each other. The rest of the world forgotten for one night.


End file.
